Penitentiaries, reformatories, and chain gangs : social theory and the history of punishment in ... nineteenth century america

The definition of punishment in America has been subjected to a variety of changes and has served as the basis for much debate over the course of U.S. history. Just how far the reach of penal authority should extend, and exactly what limits to it should be imposed, are questions explored here by sociologist Dr. Mark Colvin, who has extensive experience working in penitentiaries and correction agencies. Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction....Pages 1-5 Rival Theories of the Transformation of Punishment Systems and Penal Practices....Pages 7-27 Front Matter....Pages 29-30 From Colonies to Early Republic: The Rise of the Penitentiary in the Northeast....Pages 31-71 Market Revolution and the Consolidation of the Penitentiary in the Northeast....Pages 73-107 Applying Theories to the Rise and Consolidation of the Penitentiary in the Northeast....Pages 109-127 Front Matter....Pages 129-130 Before the Civil War: “True Womanhood” and the “Depraved” Female Offender....Pages 131-152 The Purity Crusade, Progressivism, and the Development of Women’s Reformatories: From the Civil War to 1920....Pages 153-184 Applying Theories to the Transformation of the Punishment of Women Offenders....Pages 185-198 Front Matter....Pages 199-200 From Slavery to Reconstruction: Penitentiaries and Chain Gangs....Pages 201-225 Redemption and the New South: Convict Leasing and Lynching....Pages 227-253 Applying Theories to the Transformation of Punishment in the South....Pages 255-266 Conclusion: Nineteenth-Century Legacies: Understanding Today’s Corrections System....Pages 267-273 Back Matter....Pages 275-294 The very definition of punishment in America has been subject to a variety of changes, and has served as the basis for much debate over the course of America's history. In Penitentiaries, Reformatories, Chain Gangs, Mark Colvin tackles the subject of penal change in America by examining three case studies which represent shifts in the interpretation of punishment specifically during the nineteenth century: the rise of penitentiaries in the Northeast; the changes in the treatment of women offenders in the North; and the transformation of punishment in the South after the Civil War. Colvin uses these case studies to apply four theoretical explanations of penal change, shedding light on both the history of penal authority and the current state of the system today. An engrossing and highly relevant volume, Penitentiaries, Reformatories, Chain Gangs is a comprehensive investigation of punishment and its meaning past and present. In Penitentiaries, Reformatories, and Chain Gangs, Mark Colvin tackles the subject of penal change in America by examining three case studies from the nineteenth century that represent shifts in the interpretation of punishment; the rise of penitentiaries in the Northeast; the changes in treatment of women offenders in the North; and the transformation of punishment in the South after the Civil War. Colvin uses these case studies to apply four theoretical explanations of penal change, shedding light on both the history of penal authority and the current state of our correctional system. In addition, he examines ideas such as how punishment differs from reform, topics like the treatment of women in reformatories, and the notion that the use of convict leasing and chain gangs of black prisoners in the South is a perpetuation of plantation labor leftover from slavery.