French prisons of yesteryear and today
Document type :
Article dans une revue scientifique
DOI :
Permalink :
Title :
French prisons of yesteryear and today
Author(s) :
Chantraine, Gilles [Auteur]
Centre Lillois d’Études et de Recherches Sociologiques et Économiques - UMR 8019 [CLERSÉ]
Centre Lillois d’Études et de Recherches Sociologiques et Économiques - UMR 8019 [CLERSÉ]
Journal title :
Punishment & Society
Abbreviated title :
Punishment & Society
Volume number :
12
Pages :
27-46
Publisher :
SAGE Publications
Publication date :
2010-12-17
ISSN :
1462-4745
English keyword(s) :
correctionalism • new penology • prison history • prisoners’ rights • risk
HAL domain(s) :
Sciences de l'Homme et Société/Sociologie
English abstract : [en]
In France, while the invention of the penal prison represents a historical turning point, it is also in line with the repressive practices of the Ancien Régime. Reconstruction of the sociogenesis of the institution and of ...
Show more >In France, while the invention of the penal prison represents a historical turning point, it is also in line with the repressive practices of the Ancien Régime. Reconstruction of the sociogenesis of the institution and of the general structure of prison reforms shows a peculiar historical dynamic: whereas the prison is primarily a tool for handling illegalities, its inertia resides less in its disciplinary function than in the constant inter- ference of the pragmatic achievement of its main goal – locking inmates up – with the correctional aspiration. Two important, contradictory reorientations in this dynamic partially break the ‘monotony’ of prison reforms. On the one hand, the decline in prison’s rehabilitative vocation, the extension of risk management-oriented penology and the will to remove dangerous individuals from society tend to reinforce the safety- oriented structure of the institution and its inherent violence. On the other hand, criticism of institutional totalitarianism and the demand for respect of human rights are continually questioning the traditional exertion of power in custodial contexts. The history of contemporary French prisons, torn between the primacy of security and respect for basic rights, is the outcome of the balance of power between two penal modernities with conflicting stances on basic rights.Show less >
Show more >In France, while the invention of the penal prison represents a historical turning point, it is also in line with the repressive practices of the Ancien Régime. Reconstruction of the sociogenesis of the institution and of the general structure of prison reforms shows a peculiar historical dynamic: whereas the prison is primarily a tool for handling illegalities, its inertia resides less in its disciplinary function than in the constant inter- ference of the pragmatic achievement of its main goal – locking inmates up – with the correctional aspiration. Two important, contradictory reorientations in this dynamic partially break the ‘monotony’ of prison reforms. On the one hand, the decline in prison’s rehabilitative vocation, the extension of risk management-oriented penology and the will to remove dangerous individuals from society tend to reinforce the safety- oriented structure of the institution and its inherent violence. On the other hand, criticism of institutional totalitarianism and the demand for respect of human rights are continually questioning the traditional exertion of power in custodial contexts. The history of contemporary French prisons, torn between the primacy of security and respect for basic rights, is the outcome of the balance of power between two penal modernities with conflicting stances on basic rights.Show less >
Language :
Anglais
Audience :
Non spécifiée
Administrative institution(s) :
Université de Lille
CNRS
Univ. Littoral Côte d’Opale
CNRS
Univ. Littoral Côte d’Opale
Collections :
Submission date :
2020-01-10T12:25:41Z
2020-01-15T10:06:14Z
2020-01-15T10:06:14Z
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