Incarceration: Retribution or Rehabilitation - Research Paper Example

? Incarceration: Retribution or Rehabilitation Introduction: The term ‘Incarceration’ is referred to a process of punishing an individual who has committed a wrongdoing or a crime, by putting him in a confined state of living. The punishment occurs either on a half time basis or on a full time basis and occurs as a result of a statement that is presented against the individual depending on his act of crime (Office of the Federal Register, 2009, p.429). While the case of sentencing or punishing an offender arises, there occurs a debate between the form of the available punishments, retribution or rehabilitation (Tan, 2008). The present study focuses on the issues and the arguments with regard to these two forms of punishment. Retribution and Rehabilitation: The Meanings: There are several stages in the legal system for punishing a criminal that include the arrest, trial, sentencing and punishment stages. In the last stages, the debate between the two processes occurs. The process of rehabilitation intends to lessen the tendencies of the criminals to perform acts of crimes in future. Thus the primary intention of this punishment technique is to alter the personality and the mindset of the criminal. This does not make him scared of anything but makes him realize his mistake such that he never performs such acts again. The concept of retribution, on the other hand, is of the belief that the severity of a punishment should depend on the crime that has been performed by the individual. Thus this system does not consider the consequence of the punishment but determines it on the basis of the occurrence of the crime. Thus, the meaning of retribution might mean revenge against the crime or the wrongdoing (Tan, 2008). If the two systems are studied, it can be understood that while one tends to give relief to a criminal by trying to teach him the ideal behavior and the correct manner of activities, the other method is a strict form of punishment with variation in the degree or level of the punishment depending on the severity of the crime. In other words, the system of retribution does not provide relief to a wrongdoer which is unlike the case of rehabilitation. Retribution OR Rehabilitation: Since both the systems present two different methods of treating the wrongdoers or criminals, it can be realized that an argument tends to arise as to which method would be more applicable and suitable for the treatment of the criminal. If the two systems are compared, retribution as opposed to rehabilitation seems to be a method of punishment that is in general accepted by human beings. This is primarily because they view the criminal with rage and anger and hence punishing the individual only proves to be the ultimate satisfaction of their minds. On the other hand, the rehabilitation system looks forward towards bringing alterations in the attitude of the criminal. Supporters of this system believe that the criminals might be trained and prepared in a manner that they become capable of being a part of the society again (Scaros, 2011, p. 286). If the legal systems in the Western countries are considered, then the programs of rehabilitation can be found to have acted since the 1960s. This implies the development in the acceptance of the rehabilitation processes. However, as the problem has been realized, the already accepted system of retribution or punishment is difficult to be converted or changed into the rehabilitation programs for every criminal. Particularly, if the system of punishment becomes an acceptable measure in the political atmosphere of a country and by the public of the region, then treating the criminals with positive measures and expecting them to be educated and trained towards humanity proves to be significantly problematic (Bacik, n.d.). The above studies bring into focus the debate in the selection of the appropriate procedure of treatment against the individual committing the crime. From the concepts of the two procedures, people can be expected to have different views and opinions. Since punishment has always been a common measure of treatment, and creates satisfaction among the public in general, the debate is strong in its context. An Analysis: To make an analysis on the selection of any one of the concerned treatments, that is, rehabilitation or retribution, a mixed view or opinion might appear. This is so because rehabilitation programs might prove to be ideal processes meant for the betterment of the society. The attempt to train and educate criminals and give them a chance to improve their lives by being parts of the society implies that human beings believe that no humans are bad and their mindsets might be altered. However, one point of view that can be observed in this context is that the improvement of the criminal is not guaranteed. Moreover, it can be realized that when an individual commits a crime, it does not always happen by mistake. Rather in many cases, the crimes are planned and executed. In such situations, leaving the criminal with just training and education and allowing them to enter the society again without him being punished or suffered at all, might not be an acceptable measure in the opinion of the public. In case the individual does not truly change, he might perform his wrong activities again. The legal system would be responsible in such circumstances. In contrast to the above measure of rehabilitation, retribution makes a justice to those individuals against whom the wrongs have been done by the criminals. Moreover, since the degree of the punishment depends on the level of the crime that has occurred, the person committing a less severe crime would experience less severe punishment as against the person who has committed a tremendously harsh crime. Thus, considering the practical aspects of treating an individual committing crimes, retribution seems to be more appropriate measure rather than being completely humane and leaving the criminal without any punishment at all. Conclusion: The concerned study was focused on the incarceration process and the argument based on selection between the processes of rehabilitation and retribution. From the study it can be concluded that both the processes have their own significance and benefits to the society. However, the rehabilitation process seems to be based more on ideologies while the retribution process is based on practicality. Although different people would have different views, if the doubts reflected from the rehabilitation programs can be taken into consideration, as mentioned in the study, then retribution seems to be a better and more acceptable measure in the treatment of the criminals. References 1) Office of the Federal Register (U.S.) (2009). Code of Federal Regulations, Title 49, Transportation, Pt. 1200-End, Revised as of October 1, 2009, Washington: Government Printing Office 2) Scaros, C.E. (2011). Understanding the Constitution, Massachusetts: Jones & Barlett Learning 3) Tan, N. (2008). Rehabilitation vs. Retribution. idebate. Retrieved on December 8, 2011 from: http://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=307 Read More