Norwegian Penal Norms: Political Consensus, Public Knowledge, Suitable Sentiment and a Hierarchy of Otherness

挪威的刑罰常態：政治傳統、公民教育、文化情感表達以及階層化的他者圈

挪威的刑罰規範常態是世界特例（如：最低度刑罰、最人性化監獄），試圖解讀，何其複雜。過去對此這個特例國家之刑罰常態的研究與分析不少，但並未達成一致或確定的結論。本文目的企圖從該國對犯罪與懲罰的社會反應出發，分析背後的社會控制機制，並列對照臺灣，梳理挪威刑罰常態如何可能之脈絡。本文認為挪威文化中對犯罪與刑罰的寬容與同理，與其已經滲透在該國各種社會制度中的理性犯罪觀、尊重知識公民教育、節制的文化情感表達，以及政治多黨傳統有關。雖然這些傳統歷史、文化與制度設計對挪威人習以為常的寬容刑罰觀有重大影響，但本文也發現一個可能斷裂這種寬容刑罰觀的力量正在發酵，那就是因為移工、移民與難民激增，導致「他者」圈開始階層化。對比臺灣人熟悉的美國、英國、澳洲、紐西蘭、加拿大這些央格盧薩克遜人的報復性刑罰觀，挪威的斯堪地亞文化提供了一個地理、政治、文化上炯然不同的典範。本文以他者的觀點凝視這個文化，發現挪威六百年來雖一直是面對強鄰惡劣氣候的一介小國，卻能在各種制度（包括刑罰制度）中，獨樹一格，甚至成為支撐挑戰歐美主導刑罰主流論述之少數對立觀點。透過比較，解構鑲嵌在挪威歷史、社會結構與個人行動中的在地性，以及其習以為常的寬容刑罰觀，或許可反身看見臺灣刑罰之常態，以及臺灣人何以習以為常而不自覺的身影。

The explanations for Norwegian penal exceptionalism (low level of punishment and enlightened prison conditions) are complex. All previous research explanations and discourses have their value, but are not definitive or conclusive. This paper draws attention to the control mechanisms underlying social reactions to crime and punishment: it is argued that to understand such reactions one needs to consider crime types, public knowledge and socially desirable sentiments, together with a political tradition of consensus, with associated institutional structures. However, a possible discontinuity in these reactions is evident in the challenge posed by “others” and the associated hierarchy of otherness. Norway and other Scandinavian countries provide a good geographical, political and cultural balance to the usual analyses of existing penal research based on the USA or England/Wales. My experience of this other culture (Norway) illustrates that no country has a perfect penal system, but every country, however small, can offer an alternative vision. National cultures of punishment are ‘local’ and embedded in the context of history, social structures as well as human actions；but this only increases the need for genuine comparative understanding.