A penalty is a punishment or sanction.
From the Latin poena , a penalty is the sentence , sanction or punishment that a judge or court imposes, as stipulated by legislation, on the person who has committed a crime or infraction. For example: “María Marta's murderer has been punished with life imprisonment” , “My son has to serve a five-year prison sentence for fraud” .
Depending on the severity of the offense committed, there are different types of punishment. There are penalties that deprive the subject of his freedom (and force him to remain in jail or at home under house arrest), while others take away some right or power (such as the penalty that prohibits a traffic offender from driving. ).
There are also penalties that act against the individual's assets (a confiscation or a fine) and even penalties with corporal punishment .
The death penalty
Also called capital punishment or execution , the death penalty is based on murdering a person who has been convicted by the State , in the case in which he or she has committed one of the so-called capital crimes . In many cases, this punishment has been applied to both criminals and those who opposed a particular political movement. To date, it has been abolished and ironically penalized in the vast majority of countries, with Belarus, the United States, Japan and India being some of the exceptions.
In places where this way of acting with such questionable morality is still allowed, its purpose is to punish murders, acts of espionage, political treason and alleged sexual crimes , such as adultery or sodomy. As usually happens in cases where someone decides for the rest of human beings and imposes their ideas, there is a great ideological clash between those who accept and those who repudiate the death penalty. On the other hand, it is difficult to understand that in some countries they consider that killing is an act comparable to rejecting a religion and that, as if that were not enough, both are deserving of death and humiliation.
In some contexts, shame is associated with modesty or shame.
A tool of intimidation
Many times, the death penalty has been and is used as a means to intimidate citizens, showing them what happens when the limits established by law are crossed. In 2007, the case of a Korean man who was shot in front of 150,000 people for having tried to communicate with other countries was highly publicized. The barbaric act took place in a sports stadium, with the clear intention that the entire country would see it. Ironically, once the sad spectacle was over, six more people died from avalanches.
Despite the degree of controversy that this type of sentence unleashes, human beings are characterized by their volubility , which is why a position can be reversed as soon as certain factors are altered that make it the least convenient for one. The same person who today opposes the death penalty may be the first to demand it if one of their loved ones is attacked or murdered.
Other meanings of the term penalty
A shame, on the other hand, is an internal suffering or an emotional ailment: “I feel sorry for you, you have had to live through very difficult situations , ” “I feel sorry that my uncle can't find a job,” “It's a shame that Esteban can't find a job.” come to the party.”
In several Latin American countries , finally, the notion of shame refers to modesty , shyness or withdrawal : “Felicitas is embarrassed to parade around in her underwear,” “Javier felt sorry and blushed after having confused his wife's name.” from your boss” , “I feel sorry for doing something like that” .