This essay examines the relationship between social context and the justification of punishment across history. Beginning with a broad definition of punishment as an authoritative imposition of negative consequences, the paper traces how shifting societal beliefs have driven major changes in punishment policy. It discusses the move away from public displays of punishment, the rise of mandatory sentencing in the early 1980s, and the "war on drugs" as examples of social context shaping correctional policy. The essay uses U.S. prison population statistics to illustrate how the "get tough on crime" philosophy dramatically increased incarceration rates without a corresponding rise in crime.
Punishment is an authoritative exercise aimed at imposing a negative or unwanted response to a behavior considered wrong or unjust by an individual or group. Philosophies surrounding crime and punishment have changed between centuries, and even decades, to reflect the societies in which they occur. The legal mandate of punishment enforces a source of pain or deprivation upon the convicted individual, and is an action not morally endorsed by all citizens. The justification of punishment shares a unique relationship with social context, particularly in the legal sense. Over the course of history, society's beliefs about crime have translated into specific policies. This is exemplified by the present "get tough on crime" belief that has worked its way into punishment policies in modern correctional systems. Although not all citizens within a specific society may share similar views regarding punishment, the beliefs of the majority directly influence punishment policy.
Crime is an inevitable aspect of human existence. Moral crimes, legal crimes, petty crimes, and their varying severity are all subject to an "eye of the beholder" perspective. One person may deem stealing as equally wrong as murder — or equally forgivable — while others draw distinctions between crimes, their intentions, and their rightful punishment. The historical course of punishment reflects social context.
One significant shift that has occurred in punishment over the centuries is the reduction of punishment as public spectacle. Prisoners, convicts, or even suspected criminals are no longer displayed in the gallows as a centerpiece of the public square. Evidence of punishment and the punished is now concealed behind prison walls, cells, and reformatories (Garland, 1993, p. 234). In Medieval times, offenders were placed in stocks as a form of public humiliation, which was considered an appropriate punishment within the social context of the era. In the present, confidentiality laws and practices stand as a testament to the removal of punishment from public knowledge and display.
The present-day "get tough on crime" philosophy has greatly contributed to the policies and punishments currently emphasized in the correctional system. Since the early 1980s, mandatory prison sentences directed at persons committing violent crimes, using weapons, and repeat offenders have caused a drastic shift in the execution of punishment. In 1971, there were fewer than 200,000 inmates in state and federal prisons in the United States. Twenty-five years later, in 1996, the number of prison inmates nearly sextupled, reaching almost 1.2 million (Currie, 1998, p. 12).
This rapid increase in the prison population is not a result of an increase in crime, but rather a result of courts and legislatures getting "tougher" on offenders. Crime itself had not changed — only its social context and consequent legal policies had. The presence of prisons within the correctional system exposes the implementation of mass incarceration as a government social program. The operational procedures of the correctional system have shifted to accommodate this major influx of prisoners and to support government policies of mandatory sentencing.
Another major source of the increased prison population is the proclaimed "war on drugs" arising from the 1970s and 1980s, which is an arm of the broader "get tough on crime" philosophy. As the drug problem and addiction became more prevalent in the United States, legislative officials created punishment policies targeting drug dealers and those found in possession of drugs. This is another example of social context forming punishment policy.
"Drug policy as social-context-driven punishment"
Crime is an inevitability of human existence, and its resulting punishments are a reflection of a society's beliefs. Social context and the justification for punishment have shifted over the course of history. These shifts are illustrated by examples such as the move away from punishment as public display and changes in which crimes are deemed worthy of severe punishment. In the present, the "get tough on crime" philosophy is a modern exhibit of social context molding punishment policy — a practice that caused an increase in the prison population that nearly sextupled, even as the crime rate itself did not rise. Only the rate of conviction increased.
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