Write a six to nine-page (1500-2250 words) essay that relates and applies the course material found in Module Six to two of the online videos.
Videos:
● Behind the Wall; 2010 (video; 49:00 CC) https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2675576109
● Life Inside Out; 2005 (video, 1:13:29 CC) https://www.nfb.ca/film/life_inside_out/
Module 6, Section 6.2:
The vast majority of inmates are considered non-violent by police and correctional authorities because only 1 in 3 Canadian adults in correctional institutions are there for violent crimes (CCJC Admin, 2011; Calverley, 2015). Since violence offenders are only imprisoned after a victimization and often re-commit more violent offences on release, imprisonment gives an “amount of protection to vulnerable populations so small as to be much beneath what could be considered minimal” (Brodeur, 1996). Too often, prison environments actually reinforce criminal behaviour and can even harden non-violent low-risk individuals into committing worse crimes. Rather than keep people safe, the correction system “risks creating a criminal underclass that moves endlessly in and out of prison, committing more and more serious offences at each turn” (Clarke, 2011). For example, North America was ‘protected’ from marijuana-users at the cost of turning some of them into lives of crime through prison sentences that increased their exposure to violence and criminal networks. (Module 6, Section 6.2, Carceral States and Capitalism)
The role of criminal law and corrections is to show that there is no alternative to the capitalist market except incarceration. (Module 6, Section 6.2, Carceral States and Capitalism) Once a population willingly accepts the sacrifice of its poorest members, they shatter the unity – and thus political power – of their democracy, allowing elite power to once again dominate. (Module 6, Section 6.2, The Age of Retribution)
By embracing retribution, ‘get tough’ attitudes, and the vocabulary of punitiveness, politicians seemed to discover a magical political formula: “never be for (or capable of being portrayed as being for) criminals or prisoners as individuals or as a class.” (Module 6, Section 6.2, Governing through Crime)
“[c]arceral ideology, by definition, can never be discredited. If crime and murders increase under reformers, the reform is to blame. If crime and murders increase under the most well-funded police departments and harshest prosecutors on Earth, they simply need more funding and to be even harsher. It’s a rigged game—social science and data are irrelevant. What matters is The Narrative, and no amount of counter-narrative, counter facts, or glaring media double standards will stand in The Narrative’s way.” (Johnson, n.d.) (Module 6, Section 6.2, Governing through Crime)
“If we blame […] crack, our politicians are off the hook. Forgotten are the failed schools, the malign welfare programs, the desolate neighborhoods, the wasted years. Only crack is to blame. One is tempted to think that if crack did not exist, someone, somewhere would have received a federal grant to develop it.” (Walinsky, 1986) (Module 6, Section 6.2, Governing through Crime)
“refuse to lead citizens to higher ground, to challenge us, to inspire us to find our better selves. Instead they panders to our worst sentiments, personalise everything, deride experts and evidence, tells us that we are great as we are, that we have every right to feel morally superior. It divides the world up into good and bad, black and white. This world, to paraphrase sociologist Orrin Klapp, is destructively divided up into heroes (“hard-working, law-abiding tax payers”) and villains (criminals, terrorists and fools – all the elites and so-called experts who are ‘soft’ on crime and ‘soft’ on terror). This view gives no space to the idea of redemption or, for that matter, to compassion, and brooks no debate on what the evidence might tell us or about the costs of punishment.
And in the end, in the name of safety, we are less safe. In the name of democracy, we are less free. And in our refusal to have the debate, to move beyond our prejudices, our fears, our anger, we make Canada a meaner and smaller place.” (Himelfarb, 2011) (Module 6, Section 6.2, Governing through Crime)
Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell.
In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.
God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.
Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.
To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.
References
Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.
Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.
Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.
Sample Solution
The videos “Behind the Wall” and “Life Inside Out” provide a glimpse into the lives of prisoners at Kingston Penitentiary, one of Canada’s oldest and most infamous prisons.
Sample Solution
The videos “Behind the Wall” and “Life Inside Out” provide a glimpse into the lives of prisoners at Kingston Penitentiary, one of Canada’s oldest and most infamous prisons.
The videos “Behind the Wall” and “Life Inside Out” provide a glimpse into the lives of prisoners at Kingston Penitentiary, one of Canada’s oldest and most infamous prisons. The videos document the challenges and struggles that prisoners face, as well as the hope and resilience that they often find within the prison walls.
The videos also raise important questions about the role of prisons in society and the debate over the purpose of punishment. The course material in Module Six provides a theoretical framework for understanding the videos and for discussing these questions.
The Role of Prisons in Society
The videos “Behind the Wall” and “Life Inside Out” show how prisons can be a place of both punishment and rehabilitation. On the one hand, prisoners are often subjected to harsh conditions, such as solitary confinement and long hours of labor. On the other hand, some prisoners are able to find hope and resilience through education, religious faith, and the support of family and friends.
The course material in Module Six discusses the different purposes of punishment. The traditional view is that punishment is a way to deter crime and to protect society from dangerous individuals. However, the course material also discusses the rehabilitative purpose of punishment. Rehabilitation is the idea that punishment should be used to help offenders change their behavior and become productive members of society.
The Debate over the Purpose of Punishment
The debate over the purpose of punishment is a complex one. There are strong arguments to be made for both the deterrent and rehabilitative purposes of punishment. However, the course material in Module Six argues that the rehabilitative purpose of punishment is often overlooked. The course material also argues that prisons are often ineffective at achieving either the deterrent or rehabilitative purposes of punishment.
The Videos and the Course Material
The videos “Behind the Wall” and “Life Inside Out” provide a valuable opportunity to apply the course material in Module Six to real-world examples. The videos show how the challenges of prison life can lead to violence, drug use, and mental illness. The videos also show how some prisoners find hope and resilience through education, religious faith, and the support of family and friends.
The videos also raise important questions about the role of prisons in society and the debate over the purpose of punishment. The course material in Module Six provides a theoretical framework for understanding the videos and for discussing these questions.
Conclusion
The videos “Behind the Wall” and “Life Inside Out” are a valuable resource for understanding the experiences of prisoners and for raising awareness of the challenges of prison life. The videos also provide a platform for discussing the role of prisons in society and the debate over the purpose of punishment.
In addition to the points made above, the videos also highlight the following:
- The disproportionate impact of the criminal justice system on marginalized communities.
- The importance of education and rehabilitation in reducing recidivism.
- The need for a more humane and compassionate approach to criminal justice.
The videos are a powerful reminder that the criminal justice system is not just about punishment. It is also about rehabilitation and redemption. We need to do more to ensure that our prisons are places where people can change their lives for the better.
