PHIL 140 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Eye For An Eye, Retributive Justice, Civilizing Mission
Document Summary
Topic 2: reiman"s justice, civilization, and the death penalty . Jeffrey reiman dedicates his passage of justice, civilization, and the death. Penalty to argue for the abolition of the death penalty. To reach his conclusion, remain explains a series of premises. As a modification of the lex talionis, instead of killing a killer (sentencing an eye for an eye) and retributivism, sentencing the killer"s to his just deserts, the state would sentence its worst, but civil, consequence. The distinction he makes between proportional retributivism and the other two theories is giving the criminal an alternative punishment- something just as nearly effective, or fit, as his just deserts, or the death penalty. The purpose of remain"s proposed sanction is to spare the progress in civilization because execution demonstrates a hardheartedness that society ought not parade, (141). According to reiman, the contemporary united states should not adopt the death penalty as a punishment for murder.