Victorian Prison Lives by Philip Priestley

Victorian Prison Lives by Philip Priestley

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Summary

This is an account of the process of imprisonment in England between 1930 and 1914, drawn largely from the writings of the prisoners themselves. The period was one of great change, where the idea of prisons as "moral hospitals" gave way to the idea of penal servitude and its legacy of harshness.

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Victorian Prison Lives by Philip Priestley

Victorian Prison Lives is the first account of the process of imprisionment in England between 1830 and 1914 to be drawn largely from the writings of prisoners themselves. The period was in some ways one of great change, beginning with an astonishing penitentiary experiement when prisons were seen as moral hospitals. But this approach eventually gave way to the idea of penal servitude and created a legacy of harshness and suffering still preserved in the reputations of Portland Chatham and Dartmoor. It was only towards the end of the period that the concept of modern prison administration began to emerge. But while statutary changes where taking place there was an underlying continuity. This is examined in a series of chapters on every aspect of prison life - from admission procedure, fellow prisoners and the nature of hard labour, diet and discipline to the process of release, which for a long-term prisioner could be as daunting as entry into prison.
Philip Priestly has worked for more than thirty years in and around the English criminal justice system - campaigning for victims' right, drawing attention to inequalities in sentencing, and advocating effective alternatives to prison. He is the author or co-author of twelve books, including Community of Scapegoats (1980), Offending Behaviour (1985) and Jail Journeys (1990). He has made thirty broadcast documentaries, including a BAFTA- nominated 'Cutting Edge' on neighbours' quarrels, and a study of victim-offender mediation which won a Royal Television Society award. In 1997, for a series on archaeology, he commissioned the research which established a 9,000-year-old DNA link between the skeleton of 'Cheddar Man' and Adrian Targett, a local history teacher.
SKU Unavailable
ISBN 13 9780712665872
ISBN 10 0712665870
Title Victorian Prison Lives
Author Philip Priestley
Condition Unavailable
Binding Type Paperback
Publisher Vintage Publishing
Year published 1999-08-05
Number of pages 336
Cover note Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.