Comparing Foucault's Discipline And Punishment

Jacoby says that those who oppose corporal punishment may argue that it is “too degrading” or “too brutal.” Jacoby mentions that, in today’s society, incarceration is “an all-purpose punishment, suitable -- or so it would seem -- for crimes violent and nonviolent.” However, Jacoby believes that it is prison that is degrading and brutal.

Western punishment doesn't just involve separation from society and living in a locked cell. This is a strong piece of evidence because it brings into question what really goes on in prisons, something which most would rather not think about. It shows how a society can condemn another’s form of punishment yet not take a step back and analyze its own. Another piece reason brought up is that prisons do not do what they were initially intended to do: retribution, specific deterrence, general deterrence, prevention, and rehabilitation. Instead prisons only seem to do one thing and that is punish.

In the 1700s, for example, the righteous pedestal royals were placed upon dictated the incredibly harsh and cruel punishments. Treason was repaid with unfathomable public torture. Before the 19th century, jails were used to store people prior to trial, in accordance with a system based upon the “law of retaliation.” The possibility of reformation had only begun its introduction during the end of the Enlightenment period, a time of progressive intellectual change that is somewhat mirrored today. When considering the current state of America’s prison system, it is key to examine its European roots, and those that followed with the Colonial period.

In the essay “The Prisoner’s Dilemma” by Stephen Chapman. Chapman talks about two societies western and modern civilizations, comparing both societies by their punishments and explaining how they are dealt with in each society. The assumption is imprisonment is a better form of punishment rather than being flogged as a punishment. Chapman explains how western society is “barbaric”, inhumane, cruel, and uncivilized. Chapman later reveals and compares how modern societies are in no way much different than western civilization, illustrating how punishments are basically the same and how flogging changed into serving time in prison.

Michel Foucault, Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison Wanchen Xie Introduction on the author Michel Foucault was born on October 15, 1926 in Poitiers, France. He wrote a great many works which influenced the philosophy and sociology deeply, for instance, Madness and Civilization. Not only was Foucault an intellectual and philosopher, but he was a political activist as well. He got involved in various protests and campaigns, say, against the war in Algeria, against social issues, as well as prison reform. He got involved in the prison reform in France and visited prisons in America as well.

In civil society this meant in practice that torture was mainly confined to monarchs and the highest nobles. The penalty for treason by men was to be hanged, drawn, and quartered. The penalty for woman traitors was to be burned at the stake. Torture was used for numerous reasons.

In Michael Levin's The Case for Torture, Levin provides an argument in which he discusses the significance of inflicting torture to perpetrators as a way of punishment. In his argument, he dispenses a critical approach into what he believes justifies torture in certain situations. Torture is assumed to be banned in our culture and the thought of it takes society back to the brutal ages. He argues that societies that are enlightened reject torture and the authoritative figure that engage in its application risk the displeasure of the United States. In his perspective, he provides instances in which wrongdoers put the lives of innocent people at risk and discusses the aspect of death and idealism.

Summary Foucault work of “The Gentle Way in Punishment” describes the shift from the excessive force of the sovereign towards a more generalized and controlled forms of punishment. It emphasizing on transforming and improving the individual into a socius through public works and introspection. It discusses the crime and how it is dealt with in a more rehabilitating sense that specific crime need specific moral counterparts. For example, those who are lazy give the counterpart of work.

Foucault argues, that the function of punishment is not to deter crime, rather it is to illustrate the power of the state. In 1700s executions were common public spectacles where torture was used to humiliate and inflict pain and suffering. In contemporary society, Foucault argues new forms of punishment are used, such as discipline based surveillance. The purpose of the technique is used to gain similar ends, by managing and controlling offenders in a more humane

Prison reform has been an ongoing topic in the history of America, and has gone through many changes in America's past. Mixed feelings have been persevered on the status of implementing these prison reform programs, with little getting done, and whether it is the right thing to do to help those who have committed a crime. Many criminal justice experts have viewed imprisonment as a way to improve oneself and maintain that people in prison come out changed for the better (encyclopedia.com, 2007). In the colonial days, American prisons were utilized to brutally punish individuals, creating a gruesome experience for the prisoners in an attempt to make them rectify their behavior and fear a return to prison (encyclopedia.com, 2007). This practice may have worked 200 years ago, but as the world has grown more complex, time has proven that fear alone does not prevent recidivism.

There is disagreement in society about how the purpose of the prison system should be considered. On one hand, the regulations of the prison system may seek deterrence, incapacitation, or retribution to avoid appearing too soft on inmates. On the other hand, the regulations of the prison system may seek to opportunities to re-socialize prisoners or to effect changes in the character, attitudes,

There is space for arguments to determine to what extent torture can be accepted as the right choice of action and to what extent this is not applicable. One of the core features of this essay is that here

Both punishment were different and both cases were used as a way to

Prison punishments and prisons them self have changed drastically since the Middle Ages; however, we still share many techniques that were used in the Middle Ages jailing

There is a worldwide trend in the use of penal imprisonment for serious offenses as capital punishment has been renounced by an increasing number of countries. Harsh punishments include capital punishment, life imprisonment and long-term incarceration. These forms of punishments are usually used against serious crimes that are seen as unethical, such as murder, assault and robbery. Many people believe that harsher punishments are more effective as they deter would-be criminals and ensure justice is served. Opposition towards harsh punishments have argued that harsher punishments does not necessarily increase effectiveness because they do not have a deterrent effect, do not decrease recidivism rates and do not provide rehabilitation. In addition,