Humane punishment is really an economic regulation of power effects

Evidence

‘Here the principle takes root that one should never apply ‘inhumane’ punishments to a criminal, who, nevertheless, may well be a traitor and a monster. If the law must now treat in a ‘humane’ way an individual who is ‘outside nature’ (whereas the old justice treated the ‘outlaw’ inhumanely), it is not on account of some profound humanity that the criminal conceals within him, but because of a necessary regulation of the effects of power. It is this ‘economic’ rationality that must calculate the penalty and prescribe the appropriate techniques. ‘Humanity’ is the respectable name given to this economy and to its meticulous calculations. ‘Where punishment is concerned, the minimum is ordered by humanity and counselled by policy.’ — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 150

Categorization

• DEFINE: Establishes what ‘humanity’ names within the new penal economy — a respectable label for power regulation.
• XREF: connects to: The principle of humane punishment remains undefined yet treated as insuperable — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 127; Subtler punishment masked sovereign power rather than making it more humane; Reformers reframed punishment as protection rather than vengeance — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 489 (+1 more)

Related

• The principle of humane punishment remains undefined yet treated as insuperable (similarity 0.89)
• The respectful ‘humanity’ of the criminal became the target of correction (similarity 0.81)
• Penal reform aimed to increase punishment’s effects while lowering its costs. (similarity 0.80)
• Penal reform sought not less punishment but more universal, deeper social control (similarity 0.79)
• Reformers sought to redistribute punitive power throughout the whole social body. (similarity 0.79)
• Reformers reframed punishment as protection rather than vengeance (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Subtler punishment masked sovereign power rather than making it more humane #qualifies (0.80)
• Society cultivates individual morality to cut enforcement costs #corroborates (0.78)
• Reformers reframed punishment as protection rather than vengeance #exemplifies (0.75) — Michel Foucault, Discipline & Punish- The Birth of the…, 489