Course Home Page for Punishment in Law and Culture

Spring 2010
Law No.: LAW7629
Sched. No.: 110218010

Punishment in Law and Culture
Section 1
X
Sarat, Austin D.

Administrative Information:

Days, Times (Room):	MTWR, 0820-0950 (WB129) MTWR, 0820-0950 (WB129)
Credits:	1	Type:	Lecture - short course
Capacity:	20^{This information is current as of}^{11/24/2009 06:49:08 AM}^
Current Enrollment:	20 ^{This information is current as of}^{11/24/2009 06:49:08 AM}^

Course Description:

This course meets March 1- 4 and March 15-18.

Other than war, punishment is the most dramatic manifestation of state power. Whom a society punishes and how it punishes are key legal questions as well as indicators of its character. This course considers connections between punishment and culture in the contemporary United States. We will examine punishment through the prism of philosophical literature, literary texts, legal cases, and film. We will ask whether we punish too much and too severely, or too little and too leniently. Among the questions to be discussed are: Does punishment express our noblest aspirations for justice or our basest desires for vengeance? Can it ever be an adequate expression of, or response to, the pain of the victims of crime? When is it appropriate to forgive rather than punish? We will consider these questions in the context of arguments about the right way to deal with drug offenders, sexual predators, and terrorists. In addition, we will examine the treatment of punishment in constitutional law, e.g. the prohibition of double jeopardy and of cruel and unusual punishment. Throughout we will try to understand the meaning of punishment by examining the way it is represented in law and culture.

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENT: Attendance at all class sessions is expected
COURSE REQUIREMENT: Examination