English 103 Essay 2: The Death Penalty And Capital Punishmen

English 103 Essay 2 The Death Penalty Capital Punishmentyour Assign

English 103 Essay 2: The Death Penalty / Capital Punishment Your assignment is to write a persuasive essay of 5-7 pages (1,000-1,500 words) on the subject of the death penalty. You should answer the following question in your essay: Is the death penalty an appropriate punishment for violent criminals in the United States, or should it be abolished nationwide? Write an essay expressing your own opinion on the death penalty, in which you attempt to convince the reader to take some action (either agree with your point of view, actively protest against the death penalty, or take some other action). Your essay must have a title, a thesis statement, and five or more paragraphs. Use prewriting techniques to generate ideas if you need to.

The purpose of a persuasive essay is to convince the reader to agree with a point of view or to take an action. The author of such an essay uses appeals such as ethos, logos, and pathos, as well as other techniques (such as metaphor and simile) to deliver his or her message to the reader. You may refer to the three persuasive appeals (ethos, pathos, and logos) and/or use the terminology created by Stephen Toulmin in your essay. For example, you may identify the following elements in the sources you analyze: claim (thesis), grounds (evidence), and warrant (link between the two). You must use evidence from each of the following sources to support your thesis.

You may also use additional sources related to the subject of the death penalty: 1. The film The Green Mile. Do the events of the film (specifically the tortuous execution of a guilty man and the execution of an innocent one) affect your opinions on the death penalty? (You may also use Stephen King’s original novel The Green Mile as a source.) 2. Two or more of the following essays: a. Zachary Shemtob and David Lat, “Executions Should be Televised” (pages 62-63 in the Barnet book). b. Edward I. Koch, “Death and Justice: How the Death Penalty Affirms Life” (from our course website). c. Adam Gopnik, “The Caging of America” (pages in the Barnet book). d. David Bruck, “The Death Penalty” (from our course website). Please see the next page for a sample works cited list.

Your final draft must be word-processed, according to the Modern Language Association style guidelines. You may also use information from the sources to support your points. Relax and have fun with this assignment!

Paper For Above instruction

The debate over the death penalty in the United States remains one of the most contentious issues in criminal justice and ethics. As society grapples with the morality, effectiveness, and fairness of capital punishment, it is essential to evaluate whether it serves justice or perpetuates injustices. This essay argues that the death penalty should be abolished nationwide due to its moral concerns, questionable deterrent effects, and the risk of executing innocent individuals.

Historically, the death penalty was viewed as a necessary tool for retribution and deterrence. However, many ethical frameworks challenge the legitimacy of capital punishment. From a deontological perspective, taking a human life as punishment can be inherently wrong, regardless of the crime committed. The film The Green Mile vividly illustrates the moral complexities surrounding executions—highlighting the inhumane nature of torturous methods and raising doubts about the justice of such acts. The film's portrayal of innocent characters facing execution underscores the grave risk of wrongful convictions, emphasizing that justice can sometimes be compromised by the death penalty itself.

Empirical evidence further questions the efficacy of capital punishment as a deterrent. Numerous studies, including those referenced by Bruck (2015), indicate that states with the death penalty do not have lower murder rates than those without it. This challenges the rationale that the death penalty saves lives through deterrence. Instead, it appears that factors such as socioeconomic status, law enforcement efficacy, and community relations are more influential in affecting crime rates. Therefore, maintaining the death penalty does not fulfill its intended purpose of reducing violent crimes.

Financial considerations also favor abolition. Implementing death penalty cases typically costs significantly more than life imprisonment due to lengthy trials, appeals, and incarceration expenses. According to Koch (2008), the high cost of capital cases drains resources that could be better used for crime prevention and social services. Additionally, the irreversible nature of executions makes wrongful convictions particularly catastrophic, especially in a system where racial and socioeconomic disparities heavily influence sentencing outcomes. The risk of executing innocent people, as exemplified by numerous wrongful convictions documented by Bruck and others, calls into question the morality of sustaining such a flawed system.

Proponents often argue that the death penalty provides justice for victims and closure for families. However, evidence suggests that the emotional and psychological benefits of executing perpetrators are not universally experienced and do not always lead to closure. Many victim families have expressed that the lengthy and emotionally draining process of death penalty cases prolongs their suffering. Furthermore, the application of the death penalty is often racially biased, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities, which conflicts with principles of fairness and equality enshrined in American values.

In conclusion, the death penalty embodies profound ethical issues, lacks conclusive evidence of deterrence, involves significant financial costs, and carries the risk of irrevocable errors. As society progresses, it is evident that capital punishment fails to align with the principles of justice and human rights. Abolishing the death penalty nationwide would be a crucial step toward creating a more equitable and humane justice system. Society must move beyond retribution to focus on reformative and preventive measures that uphold the dignity and value of every human life.

References

• Bruck, D. (2015). The Death Penalty. In Law and Justice. Course website.
• Koch, E. I. (2008). Death and Justice: How the Death Penalty Affirms Life. Course website.
• King, Stephen. (1996). The Green Mile. Scribner.
• Gopnik, A. (2013). The Caging of America. The New Yorker.
• Shemtob, Z., & Lat, D. (Year). Executions Should be Televised. In Barnet, pp. 62-63.
• Additional academic articles and studies relevant to the death penalty debate.
• Studies from the Death Penalty Information Center. (2020). Cost and Deterrence Studies.
• National Research Council. (2012). Deterrence and the Death Penalty.
• Radelet, M. & Bedau, H. (2004). The Death Penalty in America. North Carolina Press.
• Americans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. (2019). Human Rights and Justice Reports.