“The Eye of God”: Religious Beliefs and Punishment in Early Nineteenth-Century Prison Reform
At the end of the eighteenth century and the beginning of the nineteenth century, prison reformers were engaged in a broad debate about punishment, legal theories, and the rehabilitation of criminals. At that time, philosophical and theological arguments were tightly entangled. Eastern State Peniten...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
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Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Sage Publ.
2003
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In: |
Theology today
Year: 2003, Volume: 59, Issue: 4, Pages: 546-558 |
Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
Summary: | At the end of the eighteenth century and the beginning of the nineteenth century, prison reformers were engaged in a broad debate about punishment, legal theories, and the rehabilitation of criminals. At that time, philosophical and theological arguments were tightly entangled. Eastern State Penitentiary, built in 1829 in Philadelphia by Quakers, was the sole, radical example of a strict regime of solitary confinement, and became the embodiment of a Christian view of punishment as penitence. This article suggests a reading of Eastern State within its Christian background and raises the broader issue of how Christian beliefs influenced the modern philosophy of punishment. |
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ISSN: | 2044-2556 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Theology today
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/004057360305900403 |