The Pros And Consequences Of Medieval Torture

In medieval times, torture was used to punish criminals, deter crime, and gather information. There were many different types of torture, most of which were brutal and painful. At the time, torture was deemed necessary to maintain order. Laws were harsh and torture was severe, but effective, the form of punishment. Though the methods have changed, torture still exists today. Despite its effectiveness in the past, torture is an unfair and cruel punishment, and should be eliminated in all forms.

With the development of prisons, this changed how punishment and torture was viewed, at least in the public eye. The act of torturing, however unfortunate, comes naturally in regards to punishment. A big reason to why torture is no longer heard about in the prisons is because torture is now done the private spectrum instead of in

Punishments in the Middle Ages were harsh and horrific, with change occurring as heads of state and laws changed. In the Middle Ages, punishments were used as a deterrent to gain peasants obedience. Types of punishments included torture, mutilation, and public humiliation. When the Normans invaded England in the 11th century, (Norman Conquest of England, 2017) many changes were made to punishments. William the Conqueror used the death penalty

Another sad fact is that no one decides if the process is ethical or not it just happens (Einolf 102). Back in the Roman times, they were not allowed to participate in the act of torture (Einolf 107). Torture began being used quite frequently in the Chin century. Many people were still not sure what the difference was between punishment and torture. It was mainly believed that cruel punishment was pretty much teacher no matter what anyone said (Einolf 108). Even as recent as in 2004, many people thought it was unethical and inhumane to punish people (Einolf 101).

The War on Terror has produced several different viewpoints on the utilization of torture and its effectiveness as a means to elicit information. A main argument has been supplied that torture is ineffective in its purpose to gather information from the victim. The usefulness of torture has been questioned because prisoners might use false information to elude their torturers, which has occurred in previous cases of torture. It has also been supposed that torture is necessary in order to use the information to save many lives. Torture has been compared to civil disobedience. In addition, the argument has been raised that torture is immoral and inhumane. Lastly, Some say that the acts are not even regarded as torture.

Long time ago, the Roman emperor Nero realized that a conspiracy of some nobles to kill him. Nero arrested the suspects and made a threat with torture. In Europe, torture was implemented to extort confessions or to punish

In the late 1500s and early 1600s, torture was a large part of everyday life and although torture was not the only method, it was the most effective. Citizens of Europe in the Elizabethan Era, you would most likely come across some very terrifying forms of torture. Prisons did exist, but the main form of punishment used was torture (Science Museum). There was a prison in the Elizabethan Era, but they were mostly used for holding people with small debts or holding people until their

The Middle Ages was one of the most bloodiest times because of the torture tactics that were used as forms of severe punishments, handed down to citizens for a majority of crimes such as murder, theft, kidnapping and even trivial crimes like gossiping, sorcery, and heresy. Lack of education along with impunity caused excessive amounts of crime during the Middle Ages, making many of the lower class citizens resort to stealing. Multiple forms of torture were enforced to keep the community in a state of fear that would keep citizens thinking that they might end up being the next victim. The middle age punishments for crimes were precursors to today's law enforcement and prison system. With no police to regulate citizens on the daily keeping order and peace was in the hands of the community.

Not only can torture do cruel things to the person receiving the affliction, but it can also affect the torturer. When a person gives torture, it damages the humanity of them, which means they will never be the same person again. When torture is used, the victim is treated as a “thing” rather than a person. The receiver is basically dehumanized to achieve the desires of the torturer. Although torture can be used to discover new information, it does not always work that way. Torture can cause inaccurate information to be provided due to the want for the torture to be finished with. In some cases, torture is not the

Torture methods administered during the medieval times were much more malicious than today’s punishments. In the United States, torturing individuals is forbidden regardless of the circumstance. Using torture as a punishment has been outlawed by the U.S. Supreme court since the 1890’s, and is now included in the Eight amendment.

The influential writer Lain Brooks once said, “Torture is such a slippery slope; as soon as you allow a society or any legal system to do that, almost instantly you get a situation where people are being tortured for very trivial reasons.” In today’s society using the 1st Amendment is the norm, but in the Elizabethan Era people such as Anne Askew were tortured for standing up for their religion. (Alchin 2) The Elizabethan Government showed no mercy when it came to torture; The Rack, The Scavenger's Daughter, The Scold’s Bride, The Collar and The Thumbscrews are examples of a few of the most common forms of torture.

From the perspective of someone like Kant who believes that morality is absolute and torture is wrong, then it is never acceptable no matter what the consequences. Kant would argue that it is better to allow a 'ticking bomb' to go off and kill thousands by not using torture than to willingly torture someone, because as mere mortals we can never know for certain what the ultimate results of our actions will be - there may not be a bomb at all, or the man you have may not be the one who set it, or someone else may disarm it - but we can be certain of our intent, and thus we should never act with evil intent, which wilful torture certainly is.

Within the Elizabethan time period, from 1558-1603, punishments for wrongdoings were used to intimidate, obtain information, and discourage the act committed. The punishments for crimes depended on the severity of the offense. Crimes that would be considered common in today’s standards were treated as though they were murderous, and ones such as manslaughter or rape would result in being trapped in a cage until death by starvation. Crime and Punishment during the Elizabethan Era was excessive and bestial. Torture is the action or practice of inflicting severe pain on someone as a punishment or to force them to do or say something, or for the pleasure of the person inflicting the pain.

The history of torture in Europe may seem at first to be a steady progression of barbarous tactics, leading from one social purge to the next, but this is not completely the case. Torture has been used in a progression from primitive methods to the present more modern styles. It has also developed extensively, both in severity and variety of methods used. But in the end, torture has gone full circle; modern forms of torture are more like those methods used by savages than anything in between. Overall, the severity of torture has fluctuated, growing and receding with the passing of each new time period, but eventually reverting to its original state.

"It [torture] assured the articulation of the written on the oral, the secret on the public, the procedure of investigation on the operation of the confession; it made it possible to reproduce the crime on the visible body of the criminal; in the same horror, the crime had to be manifested and annulled. It also made the body of the condemned man the place where the vengeance of the sovereign was applied, the anchoring point for a manifestation of power, an opportunity of affirming the dissymmetry of forces."[4]