vinayaknair

Can anyone grade my essay? A person who knowingly commits a crime has broken the social contract and should not retain any civil rights or the right to benefit from his or her own labor The author claims that an individual who intentionally commits a crime should be penalized by revoking his civil rights or the right to benefit from his own labor. I agree to this to an extent but the degree of the crime needs to be taken into consideration. There are many factors that lead an individual into criminal offences. They could be moral, social or psychological. Such harsh punishments should be taken into action only through critical analysis of all the factors. As I stated before, the degree of the offence has to be always taken into consideration. But heinous moral misconducts like rapes have no excuses. I believe no external factors can drive a person into rape. It is a clear lack of morals or a fear of consequences. Taking advantage of the fragility of an individual is just not acceptable. I would even say that the measures stated by the author are too mild for the offence! Murder is another such crime. God alone has the right to take away the life of an individual. But then again, It must be clear that such an act was clearly intentional, not by accident or in self-defense. Sometimes, certain circumstances can lead an individual to crime.Poverty and unemployment are two big social factors that contribute to this. It is universally understood that theft is a crime. But you cannot penalize a destitute hungry man for stealing a loaf of bread, because the person is out of choices. He is stuck between between bearing the brunt of draconian laws, and being morally right and starving to death! It would be immoral from the legislative point of view to enforce the stated law in such cases. There are times when an individual commits a crime in a state of mental imbalance. The human brain is a complex organ, and one can lose control over it. For example, Psychopath serial killers sometimes commit murders in a state of mental unconsciousness. Though serious, one cannot call them as intentional crimes. Such individuals should be given a fair diagnosis of their mental health, and only then should be taken to trials. It is not right to penalize a person for having a disorder over which he doesn't have control. The degree of moral misconduct needs to be analysed. Heinous crimes like rape deserve draconian laws as stated by the author. But offences that are beyond the control of an individual need to be fairly assessed.