How are we as an audience, manipulated into feeling that capital punishment, as a form of punishment is inappropriate?

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How are we as an audience, manipulated into feeling that capital punishment, as a form of punishment is inappropriate?

 

We as an audience are manipulated into feeling that capital punishment, as a form of punishment is inappropriate, as we are presented with a young, vulnerable boy who has been taken advantage of and is punished for a crime he did not commit. He is in the wrong place, at the wrong time with the wrong people. He is put in a situation where he does not have the brains or the confidence to get himself out and so this makes it harder for us to accept that he is guilty.

    From the start we see Bentley on the background away from the action as shown in the allotment scene. We see how he is easily dominated. He will do anything to fit in and to be accepted. However this does not happen due to his deficiency. This makes him seem weak and an easy target. He cannot cope in the society he is put in. His low intelligence leaves him alone and he has to try and fit in the best he can with the only people he can. These people are criminally minded something Bentleys not so when he’s left with no choice, no other hope of friendship he has to cope and do his part to be accepted. This he fails in doing miserably. He is sent to an approved school this is where we find out just exactly how simple he is. We find out he has the IQ of an eleven year old.

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    Craig picks on Derek. He chooses him because he can over power and domineer him, he uses Derek to boost his own confidence. He finds a victim in Bentley as no one else fits this role. As a loner an outsider Bentley is desperate for friendship, this makes him even more vulnerable and so would jump at any chance to leave the house, have fun, make friends, and become an independent man.

   Craig sees Bentley’s vulnerability and lack of confidence and feels he can use them to his advantage. Craig has the chance to have power over ...

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