Concepts of Punishment

                                                                    Spring 2004

                                                          Suggested Paper Topics

You may choose one of the topics below or propose your own topic.  Your topic must be appropriate for the course; specifically, it should concern conceptual rather than empirical issues.  Topics not on the list must be approved.

1.      What, if anything, justifies punishment of criminal offenders?

2.      Is torture ever morally justified?

3.      What bearing, if any, should an offender's social background (e.g., poverty, deprivation) have on the application of punishment?

4.      Assume that punishment cannot deter or reform criminals.  Under what circumstances and for what kinds of crimes can incapacitation alone serve as a justification for punishment?

5.      What conditions must hold in order for the state to have a moral right to punish its citizens?  What are the implications of your position for our society?

6.      Should punishment attempt to reform or rehabilitate offenders?

7.      How should the amount of punishment appropriate to a particular crime be determined?

8.      Should attempts be punished less than completed crimes?

9.      When, if ever, is forgiveness an appropriate response to crime on the part of the state?

10.  How, if at all, should mental illness be taken into account in determining punishment?

11.  What bearing, if any, should the suffering and anger of the victim have on the severity of punishment?

12.  What significance do racial disparities in the application of punishment have for its moral justification?

13.  Are “three strikes” laws morally justified?

14.  Choose one of the articles on the syllabus and construct a response to critics on behalf of its author.