March 26, 2015 An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation Jeremy Bentham - Presentation of an ethical theory that actions are right insofar as they produce pleasure or prevent pain, and is an explanation of a political theory that the purpose of civil or criminal law is to maximize the amount of pleasure or happiness which may be enjoyed by society. o If utility is defined as the ability to produce happiness, then the rightness of an action is determined by its utility.  Bentham also argues that if happiness is viewed as the only thing which isintrinsically good, then the principle of utility is the only right principle of human action. - Pleasure is intrinsically good, and pain is intrinsically evil. o The motives which individuals may have for their actions are only good or evil if they have good or evil consequences. - The weaker the temptation that is required for an individual to perform a wrongful act, the more that performance of this wrongful act may testify to the corruption of the individual’s disposition. o The stronger the temptation that is required for an individual to perform a wrongful act, the less that performance of this wrongful act may testify to the corruption of the individual’s disposition. - While private ethics is concerned with the personal happiness of an individual, public ethics and the art of legislation are concerned with the happiness of all individuals. o If an act of legislation conforms to the principle of utility, then it tends to increasethe total happiness of all individuals. - Five classes of illegal offenses against society: o Private offenses against individuals o Semi-Public offenses against groups of individuals Wrongful acts which endanger the well-being and security of a particular class or group of individuals o Self-Regarding Offenses against the rights of the individual o Public offenses against the community  Wrongful acts which endanger public security, justice, general happiness, social harmony, economic prosperity, or national sovereignty o Offenses by acts of falsehood or by breaches of trust. - Private offenses against individuals may include those against: o Person o Propertyo Reputationo Condition (by breach of duty)o Person and Property o Person and Reputation - The punishment of illegal offenses against society should be proportional to the amount of harm which is caused by these offenses. o Punishment of offenses is not justified if it is disadvantageous or needless.  The amount of punishment for an offense should be sufficient to deter further offenses but should not be unjust or arbitrary. - Any form of punishment for violating civil or criminal laws should conform to the principle of utility. o Any punishment which is inflicted upon an offending individual should have a sufficient ground for the infliction of pain upon that individual  The purpose of punishing illegal offenses against society is not only to prevent similar or greater offenses, but to offer satisfaction to those who have been injured and to discipline and reform the offender.The Metaphysics of Morals Immanuel Kant - Punishment is not justified by any good results, but simply by the criminal’s guilt. o Criminals must pay for their crimes:  Otherwise an injustice has occurred. o Furthermore, the punishment must fit the crime.  Kant asserts that the only punishment that is appropriate for the crime of murder is the death of a murder. - Judicial punishment can never be administered merely as a means for promoting another good, either with regard to the criminal himself or to civil society, but must in allcases be imposed only because the individual on whom it is inflicted has committed a crime. o One man ought never to be dealt with merely as a means subservient to the purpose of another, nor be mixed up with the subjects of real right.  Against such treatment his inborn personality has a right to protect him, even although he may be condemned to lose his civil personality. - He must first be found guilty and punishable, before there can be any thought of drawing from his punishment any benefit for himself or his fellow-citizens.Punishment of Responsibility: “Responsibility And Retribution” H.L.A Hart Prolegomenon to the Principles of Punishment - The paper aims to explain the institution of criminal punishment and demonstrate that itis a compromise between differing principles. o There is a great deal of confusion about the goal of punishment – there is no longer seen as just one – deterrence, retribution, or reform  The general claim that different principles are relevant at different points to explain the goal of punishment is too simplistic. - Need to seek answers to questions such as what justifies punishment, to whom it may be applied, how severely may we punish? Justifying Aims and Principles of Distribution - An analogy can be made between property and punishment – both are governed by a complex structure of legal rules, an institution with different features calling for separatejustification. o Just as with property, we must distinguish between the question of the definitionof property, the question of why and in what circumstances it is a good institution and the questions about ways individuals may become entitled to acquire property, must ask similar questions with punishment. Definition - Punishment has 5 elements: o It must involve paino It must be for an offence against legal rules o It must be of an actual or supposed offender for his offence o It must be intentionally administered by human beings other than the offender o It must be imposed by an authority constituted by the legal system against which the offence is committed. - Sub-standard cases of punishment are different – such as punishments in a family Nature of the Offence - Before moving to justification, we must identify the preliminary question: o Why are some kinds of actions forbidden by law and made crimes?  To announce to society that these actions are forbidden and to ensure fewer of them are done- Watch out because some laws obscure the distinction between primary laws setting standards for behavior and secondary ones that specify what officials must do when they are broken (i.e. fines) o We lose sense of what a crime is when we confuse these.- Often there is confusion between the aim of any criminal legislation and the justification of punishment o The aim of the criminal legislation cannot be any kind of