Punishment in Pre-Revolutionary, Soviet and Modern Russian Criminal Law: towards Anti-Criminal Consolidation of Society

Introduction. Lawyers are in constant search of new effective means of combating crime. Increasing the effectiveness of prevention by means of criminal law is impossible without understanding the history of the development of technologies for influencing the psychology of a particular individual and the whole society through the applied criminal punishment. An important condition for a fair and balanced criminal policy aimed at preventing crime, combating current internal and external threats is an adequate assessment and consideration of emerging socio-economic tasks solved by the state. Materials, Results and Discussion. The article examines the evolution of the institution of punishment, its concept and goals in pre-revolutionary and Soviet criminal law from the mid-19th century to 1920. Considering the fundamentals of the regulation of criminal punishment laid down in the monuments of law testifies to its inherent nature of state coercion and retribution meant to cause physical suffering to the criminal. The public nature of the execution of torture punishments was intended to ensure general prevention. The author reveals the historical tendency of achieving the goals of special and general prevention not by inflicting physical suffering on the guilty person, but by implementing the idea of justice: the proportionality of punishment to the danger of the crime committed. Conclusions. The modern doctrine of criminal punishment is proposed to be formed with regard to the society’s perception and assessment of the danger of a crime and consolidation of the society on the basis of rejection of this type of encroachment. The role of citizens’ moral condemnation of criminals and solidarity of society in the fight against crime is shown. The increase in the importance of a developed legal consciousness and the consolidation of society against encroachments on public interests under external threats is substantiated.