Social contexts and the justification for punishment - Essay Example

Introduction Punishment is often considered as the imposition of anything which may be negative or rather unpleasant to a person in response to his or her behavior which may not be acceptable to the persons or groups of persons and society. The overall purpose for which the punishment is applied is basically to induce a particular and proper behavior in some person by the family or the society. Society therefore is one of the key instruments which identify what is right and acceptable and what is not.

Any deviance from unacceptable therefore attracts the punishment from the society. (Zaibert, 2003)The societal justification for the punishment therefore is one of oldest issues which society has been contemplating in different contexts over the period of time. This paper will therefore describe the relationship between the social contexts and the punishment besides providing a discussion about how the concepts about punishment have evolved and why modern society has become tough.Social Contexts and the PunishmentSocial context is defined in different contexts however, over the period of time the exact definition has kept on changing.

Social context is often also described as the circumstances surrounding any given action or story. Social context is also linked with the social identity or with different social variables such as gender, class etc.There are two possible explanations of the punishment and the social context i.e. retributivism as well as the consequationalism. Based on the social context such as gender, class or any action, retributivism suggests that punishment is due because a person deserves it. (Bedau & Erin, 2010)However, over the period of time, this idea has faded and the consequationalism emerged as one of the valid theoretical explanation for the connection between the social context and the justification for the punishment.

Utilitarian beliefs suggested that punishment can only be justified if it has the value and use for the society. Punishment is also considered as a mechanism for the social control therefore over the period of time society has shaped the institutions and laws in such manner which can achieve the social control. (Fagan & Meares, 2008). Apart from this, the current day approach to get tough on the punishment therefore is based upon achieving the low rates of crimes. This has been therefore based upon the notion of achieving minimum level of deterrence.

The current approach therefore is based upon the notion of achieving a correctional system which is rehabilitative in nature wherein those who commit crimes are rehabilitated while their individual rights are kept intact. Due to current approach towards keeping the rights of every citizen intact, the number of people who are punished have greatly increased over the period of time. This approach therefore has led to higher number of people being punished whereas the rate of crime reduction has been relatively slow.

As such the current correctional system has become relatively costly in America specially. ConclusionSocial contexts can play an effective role in justifying the punishment however, as the standards and approach of society changed; it also resulted into changes in the correctional system of the country too. The philosophical justifications for the punishment are based upon the retributivism as well as the consequationalism. BibliographyBedau, H. A., & Erin, K. (2010). Punishment. Retrieved October 1, 201, from The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: http://plato.stanford.edu/cgi-bin/encyclopedia/archinfo.cgi?entry=punishmentFagan, J.

, & Meares, T. (2008). Punishment, Deterrence and Social Control:The Paradox of Punishment in Minority Communities. Retrieved October 1, 2011, from Ohio State University: http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/osjcl/Articles/Volume6_1/Fagan-Meares-PDF.pdfZaibert, L. (2003). PUNISHMENT, INSTITUTIONS, AND JUSTIFICATIONS. In A. Sarat, & P. Ewick , Punishment, Politics and Culture (pp. 51-83). New York: Emerald Group Publishing Limited.