Hegel's Theory of Punishment with an Emphasis on the Criminal Responsibility of the Rational Citizen

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Kharazmi, Tehran, Iran.

2 Associate Professor, Faculty of Law & Political Science, Farabi Campus, University of Tehran, Qom, Iran.

3 Ph.D. Student, Criminal Law & Criminology, Faculty of Law & Political Science, University of Kharazmi, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

Geist, as the central concept in Hegel's philosophy, embodies the unification of individuals’ particular wills with the universal will. This unity is achieved through the dialectical progression of Geist, wherein individuals, as free subjects, recognize themselves within the universal will embodied in the state. The state, as the manifestation of the universal will, is essential for realizing the concept of citizenship. Without the acknowledgment and affirmation of the state, the notion of citizenship loses its meaning. Citizens, by virtue of their connection to the universal will, are committed to its imperatives. Punishment for wrongdoers is one such imperative, rooted in the necessity of preserving order and justice as prerequisites for the realization of freedom. A key insight derived from Hegel's writings is that the recognition of citizenship in relation to sovereignty inherently requires citizens’ acceptance of responsibility. Individuals, as rational members of society, must be accountable for their actions.  Likewise, the state is obligated to hold the offender accountable for their crime as an expression of respect for them as rational members. In this framework, punishment is viewed as the criminal’s right—a right that consequentialist theories often reject. This explanation underscores the necessity of punishment independent of other considerations, such as deterrence through fear or unqualified rehabilitative measures. The increasing reliance on security-oriented or treatment-focused criminal policies in contemporary legal systems worldwide has fostered a sense of alienation between citizens and the justice system. Drawing on Hegel's philosophy, this article aims to propose a human-centered approach grounded in the intrinsic dignity of citizens, offering a fresh perspective in this domain.
 

Keywords

References

  1. منابع

    الف) فارسی

    1. استرن، رابرت (1393). هگل و پدیدارشناسی روح. ترجمة محمدمهدی اردبیلی و سید محمدجواد سیدی، تهران: ققنوس.
    2. پیپین، رابرت بی (1398). ایدئالیسم هگل: خشنودی‌های خودآگاهی.ترجمة سید مسعود حسینی، تهران: کرگدن.
    3. پینکارد، تری (1402). فلسفة آلمانی 1760-1860 میراث ایدئالیسم. ترجمة ندا قطروبی، تهران: ققنوس.
    4. حسینی، سید محمد؛ صابری تولایی، علی (1393). «توجیه مجازات: بررسی یک نظریة ترکیبی». دیدگاه‌های حقوق قضایی، (67).
    5. ردینگ، پل (1393). هگل. ترجمة محمدمهدی اردبیلی، تهران: ققنوس.
    6. رستمی، هادی (1395). «تقابل وظیفه‌گرایی و غایت‌گرایی فایده‌محور در توجیه کیفر». پژوهشنامة حقوق کیفری، (14).
    7. رستمی، هادی (1399). حقوق کیفری و لیبرالیسم، بررسی کیفر در سنت فلسفی لیبرال. تهران: نگاه معاصر.
    8. ستیس، و.ت (1401). فلسفة هگل. ترجمة حمید عنایت، تهران: نگاه.
    9. سولومون، رابرت.سی؛ هگینز، کاتلین.م، (1401). تاریخ فلسفة راتلج (عصر ایده‌آلیسم آلمانی). ترجمة حسن مرتضوی، تهران: چشمه.
    10. لنکستر، لین و. (1401). خداوندان اندیشة سیاسی. ج 5، ترجمة علی رامین، تهران: امیرکبیر.
    11. مافی مقدم، حسین (1399). نظام فلسفی هگل. تهران: نقد فرهنگ
    12. مجتهدی، کریم (1381). هگل، منتقد فلسفه نقادی کانت، فرهنگ، (41 و 42).
    13. مجتهدی، کریم (1389). دربارة هگل و فلسفة او (مجموعه مقالات). تهران: امیرکبیر.
    14. مجتهدی، کریم (1390). فلسفه و غرب ( مجموعه مقالات). تهران: امیرکبیر.
    15. هالوی، گابریل (1393). کیفردهی آموزه‌ای مدرن. ترجمة علی شجاعی، تهران: دادگستر.
    16. هگل، گئورگ ویلهلم فریدریش (1400). عناصر فلسفة حق. ترجمة مهبد ایرانی طلب، تهران: قطره.
    17. هگل، گئورگ ویلهلم فریدریش (1391). دانشنامة علوم فلسفی به‌صورت طرح. بخش3. فلسفة ذهن( روح). ترجمة زیبا جبلی.
    18. هیپولیت، ژان (1365). مقدمه بر فلسفة تاریخ هگل. ترجمة باقر پرهام، تهران: آگاه.

     

    ب) انگلیسی

    1. Anderson, J. L. (1999). ANNULMENT RETRIBUTIVISM:: A Hegelian Theory of Punishment. Legal Theory, 5 (4), 363-388.
    2. Bentham, J. (1830). The rationale of punishment. Robert Heward.
    3. Brooks, T. (2020). The Unified Theory of Punishment. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3669410 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3669410
    4. Brudner, Alan (1995). The Unity of the Common Law: Studies in Hegelian Jurisprudence. University of California Press.
    5. Draper, A. (2002). An Introduction to Jeremy Bentham's theory of punishment. Journal of Bentham studies, 5, 1-17.
    6. Dubber, M.D. (1994). Rediscovering Hegel's Theory of Crime and Punishment. Michigan Law Review, 92.
    7. Hart, H. L. A. (2008). 'A Prolegomenon to the Principles of Punishment' in his: Punishment and responsibility: Essays in the philosophy of law. Oxford University Press.
    8. Hegel, G.W.F. & Forbes, D. (1975). Lectures on the Philosophy of World History (Cambridge Studies in the History and Theory of Politics) (H. Nisbet, Trans.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139167567
    9. Hegel, G.W.F (1998). Phenomenology of spirit. Motilal Banarsidass Pub
    10. Hörnle, T. (2013). Foundational Texts: P.J.A. Von Feuerbach and His Textbook of the Common Penal Law (1801). M. Dubber (ed.), Foundational Texts in Modern Criminal Law, Oxford University Press 2014, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2999796
    11. Kant, I. (2002). Groundwork for the metaphysics of morals. edited and translated by Allen W. Wood ; with essays by J. B. Schneewind . . . [et al.]. Yale University Press.
    12. Lewis, C. S. (1953). The humanitarian theory of punishment. Res Judicatae, 6, 224.
    13. McTaggart, J.E. (1896). ‘Hegel's Theory of Punishment’. International Journal of Ethics, 6, 479–502.
    14. Rachels, S. (2018). The Elements of Moral Philosophy. United Kingdom: McGraw-Hill Education.
    15. Rawls, J. (1955). Two concepts of rules. The philosophical review, 64(1), 3-32.
    16. Ristroph, A. (2011). When Freedom Isn’t Free. New Criminal Law Review: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal, 14(3), 468–485. https://doi.org/10.1525/nclr.2011.14.3.468
    17. Solomon, R. C. (1970). Hegel’s Concept of “Geist.” The Review of Metaphysics, 23(4), 642–661. http://www.jstor.org/stable/20125667
    18. Tunick, M. (1992). Punishment: Theory and practice. University of California Press.

     

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics