Against the Death Penalty: Writings from the First Abolitionists—Giuseppe Pelli and Cesare Beccaria

The first known abolitionist critique of the death penalty, On Crimes and Punishments by Cesare Beccaria, is presented in English for the first time, along with Giuseppe Pelli's critique of capital punishment, which was lost for over two centuries. Peter Garnsey examines the contrasting arguments of the two abolitionists, who drew from different intellectual traditions. The book explores how Beccaria's alternative penalty of forced labour was embraced in Britain and America and sheds light on Pelli's intellectual development and his role as a man of conscience. It provides new insights into eighteenth-century debates about capital punishment and offers vital historical perspectives on one of the most pressing questions of our own time.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 232 pages
Publication date: 04 June 2024
Publisher: Princeton University Press

The first known abolitionist critique of the death penalty, written by Cesare Beccaria in 1764, is presented in this English translation of his work, "On Crimes and Punishments." Beccaria's rejection of the death penalty as excessive, unnecessary, and pointless is considered a significant contribution to modern criminal-law reform. However, it is important to note that he was not the first to argue for the abolition of the death penalty. Giuseppe Pelli's critique of capital punishment, written three years before Beccaria's treatise, was lost for over two centuries in the Pelli family archives until its recent discovery. Peter Garnsey examines the contrasting arguments of the two abolitionists, highlighting their different intellectual traditions. Pelli, a devout Catholic influenced by natural jurists like Hugo Grotius, focused on the death penalty, while Beccaria attacked the criminal justice system as a whole. Garnsey explores how Beccaria's alternative penalty of forced labour, conceptualized as servitude, was embraced in Britain and America, and delves into Pelli's voluminous diaries, shedding light on his intellectual development and portraying him as an Enlightenment man of letters and conscience. The book includes translations of letters exchanged by the two abolitionists and selections from Beccaria's writings, providing new insights into eighteenth-century debates about capital punishment and offering valuable historical perspectives on this pressing issue.

Dimension: 235 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780691211947