Theories of Punishment

A term that is inherent in criminal justice is punishment. It is only because of the term punishment that 'crimes' are classified as certain acts. We have seen, down the course of society's past, that without retribution, it would often have been difficult to tame the public's barbaric and primitive impulses. It was the tool called 'punishment' that the rulers used against their subjects to sustain a fear in the public's minds about their rulers' capacities and powers. Punishments have also often been given to someone else as an insult. The most common discipline we are all familiar with, however, is the scolding or mild beating we get from our parents. In that scenario, in the case of serious offences, what are the hypotheses of punishment? How have they developed? What are the pros and cons of the different methods of punishing people? Through this article, we will try to address all such questions and explain how much the different theories of punishment in the present era are relevant.