THE DEMONIC PERSPECTIVE

Transcription

1 THE DEMONIC PERSPECTIVE Foucault and Punishment: the public spectacle of torture the body was the site of arbitrary punishment [typical punishment for this age, pulling apart legs etc] [punishment is so severe because it was a try of the kings life] done publicly, they want to scare the public into conformity importance of the soul [ idea that the body is just the vessel, as a religious person, the soul is what is important, if you said mercy you would be abiding your sins to god and the executioner would be doing the work of god] Demonology in the media: The exorcist 1973 The Amityville horror, book, 1977 Poltergeist 1982 Stigmata 1999 The exorcism of Emily rose 2005 Apocalypto 2006 [Are we fascinated with this kind of thing?]

2 Modern allegations of possession Robbie Mannheim, Roland doe Annelise Michel David Verkiwitz (son of sam) Robbie Manheim: The exorcist was loosely based on his life. He was exorcized in the late 1940s at the age of 13 after his family claimed that words such as Hell appeared in his skin, he levitated and spoke languages he did not know. His real identity is unknown Anneliese Michel Michel was exorcised in She had suffered a seizure in 1973 and subsequently heard voices telling her she was damned. She also complained of seeing devil faces and became increasingly intolerant of sacred artifacts and places. She died of malnutrition and dehydration in 1976 David Berkowith (Son of Sam) He lived in NYC, murdered six people and wounded seven. He was apprehended in 1977 and ultimately sentenced to six life sentences. He maintained that his actions were the result of demonic possession, lost in court Possession and Temptation Two roads to demonic deviance: possession and temptation. Seven great (deadly) sins: Sloth apathy, laziness Anger anger, hatred, revenge, violence Lust excessive thoughts of a sexual nature Pride love of self

3 Envy insatiable desire Gluttony excessive indulgence Greed avarice, hoarding, theft School texts and Morality: Views on abortion, euthanasia, and homosexuality [BC teachers said there was too many suicides in LGBT teens, what we should do is have textbooks that reflect the diversity in society More diversity is a good thing ] British Columbia school curriculum debate about including texts such as: Belinda s Bouquet One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads Asha s Mums [Surrey school board said that this violated our beliefs from a religious perspective, took it to court, lost] Lex Talionis: An eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, stroke for a stroke, burning for burning Estimates range from as low as to witches executed during the Renaissance Shaving heads, the Scarlet letter (big a, stands for adultery, typically in females), branding a T upon a thief s forehead The Salem Witch Trials: In 1692, the Salem witch trials began in Massachusetts and over 150 people were arrested and imprisoned. Twenty nine people were convicted on the capital felony of witchcraft. There were no witch burnings, most people were hung, crushed or died in prison.

4 Titchyba, first witch perpetrated Govorners wife was an alleged witch, governer was like wtf no, and put a atop to it, that s when it ended Malleus Maleficarum: Malleus Maleficarum (Hammer of the Witches) written by Heinrich Keamer and Jacob Sprenger in 1486 was used to punish convicted witches, It suggested that witches were usually female, they cast spells on other women, and that torture was an acceptable means of proving guilt. [user guide to identify witches] The Salem Witch Trials 2: Witches were burned in Europe, hung in Europe and North America, endured the water test [ tie up women, if you float=witch], were identified by the existence of birth marks and spectral evidence Spectral evidence can see ghostly images emanating from a witch Malleus Maleficarum 2: The malleus Maleficarum were also significant due to the mass hysteria it helped generate. This is because it suggested that those who denied the existence of economic contraction, racism, and sexism combined with the Malleus, lead to the hysteria that ensued. Demonic Perspective: Many underlying tenents commonly held throughout society today Directly informs policy makers on moral issues Reveals the seemingly arbitrary nature of defining deviance of implementing control policies [George bush said that his religion obviously had an impact on how he ran the country] Demonic Perspective 2:

5 Centralized control and authority Reveals that the affective emotional characters of deviance, conformity and social control [we don t usually look at deviance form an objective perspective, it shows will power and makes people upset] Modern Examples The holocaust Nazis created fear in people who are genetically defective and exterminated them. The red scare That communism is around the corner for North America Senator mccarthy labeled gay, lesbian and communism the same Satanic day care centres most in Sask Conclusion: What is wrong, if anything with this line of logic? Guy who raped woman for 9 hours, who not do those things today? Because its not going to change the victimization that has already occurred A state that practices cruel and arbitrary practices is just as bad as the criminal they are trying to punish Would a deviation of such justice system work today? what would it look like?

6 THE CLASSICAL PERSPECTIVE The power of the lawyer is in the uncertainty of the law. Jeremy Bentham Context: The demonic perspective (possession and temptation as causes of deviance) Arbitrary [ different punishments for same crime], brutal, and public punishment Deviants partly responsible for their behavior Chaotic (high crime rates) Classical Reformers: Enlightened reformers such as Beccaria, Bentham viewed demonic punishment as systemic rage The nature of all human action was the same (self interest) The importance of happiness Mini Max Theorem Calculating rational actors Hedonistic, self interested Units of pressure and pain calculated Principle of a civilized nation Free will and social contract If we can get everyone to understand that if they do good things, they will get things in return, they will follow this

7 Punishment: Deterrence was central to punishment. Crimes, not criminals should be the focus of punishment According to classical theorists, punishment must contain three basic elements in order to be effective: Swiftness (celerity) [quickly after the act is done] Certainty [does not have to be extreme punishment, just certain] Most important out of the 3 Severity [needs to be one unit of pain greater than the act] Punishment 2: Bentham proposed that laws could be created when deviant behavior presented a demonstrable social harm. If there was no victim, then there was no harm done. Thus it appeared as though the prevailing moral basis for determining deviance had been seriously challenged by enlightenment reformers, mortality was still evident in definitions and treatment of deviance. Determining the common good is a subjective process that explicitly disregards the rights of minority groups. Punishment 3: Foucalt (1997) explains that the Enlightenment brought dramatic changes to the Modern understanding of definitions of deviance and methods of punishment. Classical theorists sought to being uniformity to punishment by ensuring that the legislative body generated laws and the judicial determined questions of guilt. These reformers, likely considered deviant themselves at the time, maintained that all behavior was hedonistic; attempts to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. As such, deviance was deemed no different than any other behavior and effective control was based on swift, certain punishment slightly more severe than the pleasure derived from it. Punishment 4 Rational punishment Legislative determination of law, judicial determination of guilt Deterrence as the reason for social control Control of acts rather than actors

8 Punishment 5 French Penal Code 1791 Current justice systems (modifications) Growth of prisons Problems? Bentham s Panopticon: Presido Modelo, Cuba: Joliet Correctional Centre, Illinios: Chi Hoa, Vietnam: Problems? What is problematic about this perspective? Are people rational? Can we ascertain units of pleasure and pain? Does prison work? On what basis should punishment be based?