摘要:刑罚目的理论是刑罚理论的核心部分，历来颇多争议，这些争议最显著的特征是在功利刑论和报应刑论之间徘徊不前。事实上，功利主义和报应主义不符合我国刑罚的现状。因此，探讨刑罚的目的，我们必须寻求新的思想基础。刑罚实际上是一种国家与人民之间的相互关系，这决定了我国刑罚的思想基础应是最能体现国家与人民之间关系的“以民为本”思想。探讨刑罚的目的，有利于打击犯罪，有利于保障人民的权利，也为完善我国的刑罚制度提供一定的理论指导。

关键词：刑罚目的；以民为本；刑罚教育；正义价值；功利价值

Abstract:The theory on penalty purpose with a lot of controversies，which the most distinctive feature is staying up between utilitarianism penalty theory and retribution penalty theory, is a core of penalty theories. In facts, utilitarianism and retributivism don't conform to the state of native penalties. To answer the question what the penalty purpose should be, we must find another ideological basis. Penalty reflects the relationship between the state and the people．It decides that the ideological basis of penalty is people-oriented which mostly reflects the relationship between the state and the people. Discussion on the penalty purpose would make a profit on the fight against crime, the protection of people’s right and the improvement of our penal system after a rather direction. 

Key words: penalty purpose；people-oriented；penalty education；the value of justice；the value of utilitarianism

　　　刑罚目的理论是刑罚理论的核心部分，历来颇多争议。这些争议的最显著特征是，在功利刑论和报应刑论之间徘徊不前，刑罚目的理论的所有争议都可归结于报应正义与功利主义之间的取舍问题。这些争议造成刑罚目的理论的模糊性，刑罚实践也因此受到阻碍：一方面，刑罚实践的价值取向无法保证正确性，法官判决难以一致；另一方面，刑罚制度的改进方向模棱两可，难以得到合理完善。为了保证刑罚的正确性，为了完善一国的刑罚制度，刑罚实践亟需一个明确的目的作为理论指导和改进方向。