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Introduction
The death penalty remains one of the most discussed topics in many countries, and the USA is no exception. This type of punishment is utilized in some states while other states have abolished the death penalty. Researchers, officials, victims, and offenders have many arguments to support or oppose capital punishment. It has been acknowledged that gender and religious beliefs are major factors affecting peoples attitudes towards the matter (Lee et al. 656). Females are likely to oppose the death penalty while males tend to support it. Miller and Hayward note that peoples attitudes towards the issue depended on their fundamentalism, evangelism, and their beliefs about Gods and their religious groups attitudes towards murderers (113). It is possible to assume that as long as people have the same religious beliefs, capital punishment will be justified. However, a closer look at major religious texts and beliefs shows revenge mentality is not consistent with modern views. Since we as a society have to move away from the eye for an eye revenge mentality to avoid situations when mentally ill patients may be put to death, the death penalty is not justified in any case.
Background
Many people stress that revenge mentality is deeply rooted in peoples worldview, which makes many people think that the death penalty is justified. The Hebrew laws based on Hammurabis Code (eye for an eye) are often regarded as the core of this justification. The supporters of capital punishment stress that their religion says that killing a person for such crime as murders is the only option. They argue that punishment should be proportional to the harm caused (Recinella 38). At the same time, these people forget that the codes and laws they refer to have quite specific types of punishment for other offenses. At present, the majority of people do not support the idea that it is necessary to cut a hand of a thief although it was common two thousand years ago (Recinella 38). It is crucial to remember that human society has evolved and many norms and codes are outdated or even seen as barbaric. The person living in the 21st century should believe that the death penalty simply increases violence and grief and does not help the victims close ones recover from their pain. At the same time, close ones of the offender can start seeking for revenge, which creates an eternal cycle of violence and grief.
Evidence
To understand the causes of the prevalence of the strong support of this type of punishment, researchers evaluated the impact of various variables. It is acknowledged that the major factors affecting peoples attitudes towards capital punishment are gender and religious beliefs. Miller and Hayward claim that supporters of the death penalty are likely to be males and Protestants (120). The researchers also stress that peoples attitudes towards their religion, their fundamentalism, the way God and their religious group see punishment are crucial in forming a perspective on the matter. It is noteworthy that the studies implemented on the matter have a number of limitations. They are mainly quasi-experimental, which negatively affects their validity and reliability (Lee et al. 643). More so, peoples attitudes towards a hypothetical murder and murderer are under analysis, which can also have an impact on their reasoning and perspectives.
The most important finding of the studies mentioned above, as well as many similar studies, is that religious belief are instrumental in forming or shaping peoples views. It is important to evaluate the major factors shaping peoples views on the matter to be able to understand whether the death penalty can be justified. People search for justification in religious texts but seem to miss an important point. Some take the texts literally while others focus on some parts and ignore others. This approach has already been compromised as it contributed to the development of slavery several centuries ago (Recinella 100). People justified the inhumane treatment of others through reading religious texts. At present, it is universally acknowledged that slavery cannot be justified. Likewise, the development of society is likely to help people see that the death penalty is an outdated practice that causes a lot of harm.
Refutation
At the same time, it is necessary to take into account some positive aspects of this type of punishment. The death penalty is the only way to make sure that the offender will not kill anymore. Imprisonment is a less effective type of punishment as offenders can escape and continue killing and causing considerable harm to society. Those who escape often try to take revenge and kill (torture, injure, and so on) people who were involved in their imprisonment. The execution addresses this issue. Notably, the death penalty often discourages some criminals from committing serious crimes. The execution can be a very rare activity, but offenders will still try to avoid engaging in certain criminal activities due to their fear of being executed.
Nevertheless, this benefit of the practice is also a significant downside. The terminal nature of capital punishment makes it impossible to address judicial errors that are often quite common (Recinella 308). Thousands of people have been convicted, and some of them were even executed. Clearly, no one can relieve the pain of the executed persons relatives who learned that their close one was innocent but still was murdered by the system.
Conclusion
On balance, it is necessary to stress that the death penalty cannot be justified. It is a cruel and outdated practice that has to be abandoned. People still try to prove that capital punishment has to be present in modern society as it is incorporated into human culture. These people emphasize that the revenge mentality is consistent with human nature, and has been used for centuries, which makes it acceptable and even necessary. Nevertheless, a closer look at religious texts can show that the system of punishment is not confined to executing people for murders. Other types of punishment are seen as unacceptable in contemporary society. Therefore, it is essential to make sure that people abolish this barbaric practice that has adverse effects on the development of society. The death penalty brings more violence to the world and fails to ensure peoples refrain from committing such serious crimes as murders. It is time to be consistent and develop new and effective ways to treat criminals rather than choose some practices from the past while condemning other types of punishment. Breaking the vicious cycle of violence can have a positive impact on the development of human society.
Works Cited
Lee, Gavin M., et al. Knowledge and Death Penalty Opinion: The Marshall Hypotheses Revisited. American Journal of Criminal Justice, vol 39, no. 3, 2014, pp. 642-659.
Miller, Monica K., and R. David Hayward. Religious Characteristics and the Death Penalty. Law and Human Behavior, vol 32, no. 2, 2008, pp. 113-123.
Recinella, Dale S. The Biblical Truth About Americas Death Penalty. Northeastern University Press, 2015.
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