On Crimes and Punishments (Beccariea)
You may not be familiar with the name Beccaria, but you are familiar with his work. He is significantly responsible for the formation of the criminal justice system that is in place in the United States today. Without his involvement, the system would have a totally different appearance.
Cesare Beccaria was an Italian philosopher and thinker who lived during the 18th century. He was known for his work in the field of logic. He was a member of a group of intellectuals who called themselves The Academy of Fists. The topic of discussion in this group was the improvement of the legal system. Beccaria published On Crimes and Punishments in 1764 with the intention of achieving this goal. Beccaria was aware of the limited number of research that had been undertaken regarding reform.
He felt that every person possessed the fundamental capabilities of free will, the aptitude for rational thought, the capacity to think in their own self-interest, and the capacity to be manipulated. In a nutshell, Beccaria was of the opinion that people engage in criminal behaviour because they voluntarily make decisions that are motivated by their own self-interest. These options can occasionally be in direct opposition to what's best for society. As a result of the fact that many of the choices that lead to criminal activity can be foreseen, society ought to take steps to influence and discourage such choices. The decisions could be discouraged by society by instituting criminal consequences that are harsh enough to deter individuals from choosing to engage in criminal activity.
Let's take a closer look at some of the most important topics that are brought up throughout On Crimes and Punishments.
Utilitarianism
Through his text, Beccaria contributed to the development of two significant philosophical views. The first one is something called a social contract. The concept of "social contract" relates to the view that the people are the primary source of political power for their government, and that the sole purpose of the government is to serve the people. This indicates that the people have the ability to choose whether or not to grant the government more authority. They establish their own norms and standards. According to Beccaria, the only reason criminal punishment could be considered justifiable was in order to advance the social compact. Treason was considered to be the most terrible crime by him due to the fact that it went against the terms of the social compact.
The second philosophy is known as utilitarianism. A view that the government should only legislate in ways that offer the greatest good for the largest number of people is referred to as utilitarianism. This belief is derived from the social contract theory. This is a significant philosophical theory that was explored more extensively via the later works of Jeremy Bentham. Bentham is known for his work on utilitarianism. Beccaria argued, via the lens of utilitarianism, that the purpose of criminal punishment should be one that is beneficial to the people. The application of appropriate punishment has the potential to both boost levels of happiness across the globe and improve social conditions.
Deterrence
At the time of Beccaria, vengeance was frequently the motivation behind criminal punishment. The doctrine of criminal punishment known as "payment for harm done" asserts that punishment is meted out as retribution for wrongdoing. The proverb "an eye for an eye" serves as the foundation for the concept of retribution. This hypothesis has certain retaliatory and vindictive tendencies. Beccaria was of the opinion that it did not help society.
Instead, Beccaria advocated for preventative measures. One form of crime prevention is known as deterrence, which means that the possibility of being punished is more compelling than the desire to commit a crime. Both the perpetrator of the crime and potential future offenders are discouraged from engaging in illegal activity as a direct result of the deterrent effect. Beccaria was of the opinion that society could benefit the most from preventative measures.
On the other hand, in his opinion, in order for punishment to be effective in preventing future offences, it must:
- Be certain
- Be swift
- Be appropriately severe
Let's take a closer look at those guiding ideas, shall we?
According to what Beccaria wrote, offenders need to have a rational fear of a precise punishment for the deeds that they commit. To put it another way, there needs to be a high likelihood that the offender will be punished in order to effectively discourage criminal behaviour. The next step is to ensure that the penalty is appropriately proportional to the offence. This indicates that the penalty ought to be fast, or carried out immediately after the offence was committed. In conclusion, the severity of the penalty should be appropriate to the offence that was committed. The likelihood of being punished, rather than the harshness of the punishment itself, should be sufficient to deter unlawful action. To this objective, the severity of the punishment does not have to exceed that which is necessary to counterbalance the potential benefits of the offence. For instance, it serves no purpose to sentence someone to life in prison for shoplifting when the offender can be properly dissuaded from committing the crime by the possibility of spending a month in jail.
This was one of the primary reasons for his opposition to the use of the death sentence in most circumstances. Beccaria believed that the death penalty was an excessively harsh punishment. He stated in his writing that longer sentences of incarceration, lifelong servitude, or even exile were more effective as deterrents.
Conclusion
Cesare Beccaria was an Italian philosopher and thinker who lived during the 18th century. He was known for his work in the field of logic. In 1764, he penned the book On Crimes and Punishments. The concept of the "social contract," which can be defined as the conviction that the main purpose of the government is to serve the people, and that the people are the source of political power for the government, was presented in the book. It also supported utilitarianism, which is the concept that the government should only legislate in ways that bring the greatest possible benefit to the general population.
Beccaria argued against the criminal punishment idea of retribution, which holds that punishment is restitution for harm done and that punishment should be given accordingly. Instead, he advocated for the use of deterrence. This is a form of crime prevention in which the possibility of being punished is made more compelling than the desire to commit the crime. He believed that in order for punishment to be effective in preventing future offences, it had to:
- To be certain or to a high degree of probability
- Act quickly or in a timely manner.
- Be properly punitive such that it deters illegal activity without being unduly severe; this will ensure that it has the desired effect.
Outcomes of Reading
After you have finished this reading, you should be able to do the following:
- Remember what Cesare Beccaria thought the reasons were that people committed crimes.
- Using Cesare Beccaria's book On Crimes and Punishments as a reference, please explain his ideas regarding social contracts and utilitarianism.
- Describe how Beccaria feels about the concepts of retribution and deterrence.
- Find the components that, according to Beccaria, are required to effectively discourage criminal behaviour.
- Learn the reasons behind Beccaria's opposition to the death penalty in the majority of situations.