Picturing Punishment: The Spectacle and Material Afterlife of the Criminal Body in the Dutch Republic

Picturing Punishment explores how visual media related to criminal punishments generated discourse and formulated public opinion in the seventeenth-century Dutch Republic. It argues that the circulation of these images facilitated a space in which potentially dissenting positions could be formulated while also bringing together seemingly disparate groups of people.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 13 September 2021
Publisher: University of Toronto Press

Picturing Punishment delves into the captivating representations of criminal bodies as they navigated through, within, and beyond publicly accessible spaces in the seventeenth-century Dutch Republic during punishment rituals. Once executed, the criminal cadaver did not find eternal rest. Instead, its movement through the public realm served as a vivid testament to the lingering power of the deviant body, particularly its ability to reshape civic life. Anuradha Gobin, in her insightful analysis, emphasizes the significance of material culture associated with key sites of punishment. She argues that the circulation of visual media related to criminal punishments played a pivotal role in fostering discourse and shaping public opinion, particularly concerning the effectiveness of civic authority.

Certain types of objects associated with criminal punishments took on a crucial role in asserting republican ideals and showcasing the authority of officials in maintaining order and control. On the other hand, the circulation of other forms of images, such as inexpensive paintings and prints, possessed the potential to challenge official narratives. As Gobin meticulously reveals, visual culture created a space where dissenting perspectives could be formulated while also bringing together diverse groups of people in a shared pursuit of knowledge. By drawing upon a diverse range of sources, including architecture, paintings, prints, anatomical illustrations, and preserved body parts, Picturing Punishment vividly demonstrates how the criminal corpse was reactivated, reanimated, and, in many ways, reintegrated into society.

Weight: 614g
Dimension: 158 x 236 x 27 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781487503802