Protagoras’ Statements on Punishment

Protagoras’ Statements on Punishment
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Protagoras’ Statements on Punishment
Protagoras asserts that virtue is not something that is easily provided and teachable. As such, humans punish wrongdoers for deterring crime in society. Protagoras tells Socrates to reflect the reason why people punish those who are unjust. In reality, he claims that when punishing others, no one does it by focusing on the injustice committed. Instead, individuals do it to seek retribution and eliminate crime in the future. Even if wealthy people take their children to the best schools, teachers do not teach virtue. Consequently, since virtue cannot be gained through education, punishment is used to deter wrongdoing in society.
To a great extent, Protagoras’ descriptions give the ground to the reason why individuals, communities, and cities punish unjust people. Since virtue is not taught in schools, wrongdoers are punished for warning them and others who might be planning to engage in immoral activities. In other words, punishment i...