8.2. Retribution 
DAVID CARTER 
Retribution 
Retribution, arguably the oldest of the ideologies/philosophies of punishment, is the only backward-
looking philosophy of punishment. That is, the primary goal of retribution (in its original form) is to 
ensure that punishments are proportionate to the seriousness of the crimes committed, regardless of the 
individual differences between offenders, other than mens rea and an understanding of moral culpability. 
Thus, retribution focuses on the past offense, rather than the offender. This can be phrased as “a balance 
of justice for past harm.” People committing the same crime should receive a punishment of the same type 
and duration that balances out the crime that was committed. The term-backward-looking means that the 
punishment does not address anything in the future, only for the past harm done. 
It is argued as the oldest of the main correctional/punishment ideologies because it comes from a basic 
concept of revenge, or “an eye for an eye.” This concept of an eye for an eye, or vengeance, basically means 
that if someone perceives harm, they are within their right to retaliate at a proportional level. This idea that 
retaliation against a transgression is allowable has ancient roots in the concept of Lex Talionis, which roughly 
translates into the law of retaliation. A person who injures someone should be punished with a similar 
amount of harm (punishment). This concept was developed in early Babylonian law, and it is here that we 
see some of the first written forms of customs and practices. Thus, around 1780 b.c., the Babylonian Code, 
or the Code of Hammurabi, is considered the first attempt to codify practices by individuals of a group. 
We recognize these today to be our first attempt at written laws. These laws (pictured below) represent a 
retributive approach to punishment. That is proportional punishments for past harms done. 
 
313