Peirce, Sentimentalism, and Prison Reform

Charles Sanders Peirce argued that we have no right to harshly punish criminals, especially by causing them to suffer and die in prison. Summarily stated, his argument is that the state has only those rights and powers conferred on it by its citizens, and as its citizens do not have the right to but are morally prohibited from harshly punishing criminals, the prison system must be reformed. This essay develops and defends Peirce's argument in the context of his nascent sentimentalism and suggests that as the prison system of Peirce's time is akin to our own, his argument is as applicable today as it was then.