Compare And Contrast Rehabilitation And Retributive Punishment

There once was a boy named Tim. Tim grew up in a poverty stricken home. His father deals drugs in an effort to combat their poverty. Tim’s mom is an alcoholic. When Tim turns eighteen he joins a gang and enters the drug business. He is them arrested and put on trial. The judge must decide how to punish Tim. Two prominent forms of punishment are set before the judge: rehabilitation or retribution. What are these forms of punishment and how are they different? Though both are considered punishment, their philosophy of punishment, approach to punishment, and pursuit of justice are quite contrasting. The philosophy behind rehabilitation and retribution is the core of their differences. The idea of rehabilitation stems from a …show more content…
Retributive punishment includes sanctions such as prison sentences (limiting one’s freedom), fines paid to victim, or in more ancient times ‘an eye for an eye.’ A country’s law defines what the proper reaction is to a criminal’s action. Though retribution is very black and white, its justification demands it to be so. Punishment is meant to censure lawbreaking so laws stay validated, respected, and effective.
On the other hand, rehabilitation’s goal is to create a safer society by preventing criminals from reoffending. Rehabilitation sees a criminal as an individual in need of freedom rather than a lawbreaker in need of incarceration. Rehabilitation seeks to free an individual from their addiction to crime. “Rehabilitation means an individual no longer wants to commit the crime(s) in question.” Eighty percent of criminals live under the poverty line. Many lack the skills and opportunities to get real jobs; therefore they resort to crime. Rehabilitation seeks to educate and counsel in “hopes that prisoners will learn the value of legitimate work and hopefully gain