Capital Punishment and John Grisham

Capital Punishment and John Grisham

Every society in history has wrought punishments upon those who have violated its laws

and/or codes of conduct. From Hammurabi's "eye for an eye" to the some Middle Eastern

countries' practice of amputating the hands of thieves, many of these punishments involve violence

and pain. Some governmental systems are willing to execute those convicted of the worst crimes.

The United States of America is one of the countries which feels comfortable with killing its own

citizens. The Chamber by John Grisham deals, in detail, with the subject of capital punishment.

This novel forces its readers to seriously consider the consequences of the death penalty,

especially in the broken, lumbering legal system existing today in the United States. The book

discusses almost every possible argument against capital punishment. The character who is set to die

The Chamber, by John Grisham, was basically an attack on capital punishment.

Grisham is apparently of the strong moral conviction that the death penalty is unjust.

However, the book dealt with several other issues, including alcoholism, rape, bigamy,

racism, and dealing with racists (especially those from a long time ago).

The Chamber is a work of fiction in novel form. Grisham tells the story of Billy

Whitehall, a blind member of the KKK, who took part in a bombing which killed two young

heiffers and seriously injured a farmer. Billy is subsequently (after two hung juries)

convicted and sentenced to death at the age of 61. He spends close to 25 years on death

row, awaiting myriad appeals and stays of execution (where his execution date is

postponed). After terminating his lawyers and deciding to represent himself, he is

confronted by his grandson Kyle Christianson, fresh out of pre-school, who wishes to

misrepresent him. The bulk of the book is narrative about Kyle finding things out about his

past from his Aunt Lee, filing last minute "gangbang appeals", and eventually making

peace with his grandfather -- a character who you hate at the begin

Capital punishment is defined as the legal infliction of the death penalty and has been part of the criminal justice system since the earliest of times. Over the years, there have been many standards for the execution of the death penalty. In modern law the death penalty is corporal punishment in its most sever form. Today, the common arguments for the death penalty are that, it is a deterrent. It goes along with the bible.