Run Woman

Incarceration is not meant to be fun and never will be. As stated in an article by Etienne Benson, "Until the mid-1970s, rehabilitation was a key part of U.S. prison policy. Prisoners were encouraged to develop occupational skills and to resolve psychological problems- such as substance abuse or aggression--that might interfere with their reintegration into society."

The episode "White Bear" was clearly not meant for punishment and much less for rehab. This was without doubt done for entertainment. Although the suffering the young innocent girl went through was morally wrong, the things done to Victoria were far too unjust. This was cruel "punishment" (as they called it) that was making profit. If it were indeed a punishment, then there would not have been a need to erase her memory. Erasing her memory each night was pointless because she was  technically not paying for what she had done; to her understanding, she was being attacked with no reason. The erasure of her memories meant she was a whole other person. If Victoria had her memories she would have known the price she was paying.

There are indeed other alternatives that could of been taken in place of what was done. I strongly believe that the death penalty is simply the easy way out, unless a person is really mentally unstable and can't be helped back to health. Then in this scenario, I see this as what is best for that person. Nonetheless, in this case, I guess the same could of been done to Victoria as what she did to the girl, however, not for over a long period. The crowd was clearly entertained and pleased recording everything, but I do not see how they were able to do so for in what seemed to be a month. People can find pleasure in others suffering the first couple of times but just seeing someone go through this daily would make me the insane one. I firmly believe the audience did go overboard. You can't "punish" someone for their bad actions when someone in a powerful position is doing the same and even worse, it sets a bad example. Another alternative could of been to plainly lock her up and make her serve her time. Additionally, rehab could of worked as well. She did feel remorse at the end of each night, leaving a possibility of change. People can change once sense knocks into their heads, although it can be hard to really know if someone changed, second chances should be given. These are things only time can tell. Furthermore, referring back to the quote, basic skills, from social to working, should be taught so when they enter back into the world, they''ll come out with some type of goal or aspirations.