Why do we punish people?

Answer 1

There are three primary reasons:

Deterrence - Punishment deters others from committing crimes.

Punishment - Satisfies societies need for revenge in a controlled manner.

Protection - By locking criminals up, it prevents them from continuing to hurt society.

Answer 2

Society punishes people who commit crimes, because society seeks to discourage crime, so that we may all enjoy a safer society in which to live. If crime did not lead to unpleasant consequences, then the only motive to refrain from committing crimes (of whatever sort - theft, murder, rape etc.) would be your own inner sense of moral obligation to your fellow humans. Unfortunately, many people are fundamentally selfish, and do not feel any sense of moral obligation toward their fellow humans. Of course, we as individuals can still protect ourselves from criminals even if society does not act collectively to protect us. But some people are better at this than other people are. In a world in which everyone is strictly on their own, the strong survive and the weak perish. It is the law of the jungle. And that is not really the kind of world that we would like to live in.

Answer 3

because we are angry with them.