Is prison an effective form of punishment?

Imprisonment is an increasingly common method of punishment in modern British society, its basis being to punish the offender by depriving them of their liberty. Costing the taxpayer “£36 million a week” (Frances Cook, director of the Howard League), an amount that makes an entire third world country’s economy look like pocket money in comparison, it would be fair to assume that Her Majesty’s Prison Service is one of great efficiency and effectiveness. In reality however, imprisonment is under constant debate and has many critics, leading us to question its effectiveness.

The Oxford English Dictionary states that to punish is to “cause an offender to suffer for his or her offence” (Liebeck & Pollard, 1997). Prison usually involves indignity, physical discomfort, psychological pain and general unhappiness, as well as impairing future prospects of employment and social integration upon release. Therefore suffering is definitely involved and prison certainly classifies as ...