French Literature Reviews - 2026
Torture, By What Right? A Practice of Power (16th–21st Century)
History, Politics and Society
Torture, By What Right? A Practice of Power (16th–21st Century)
Edited by Norbert CAMPAGNA, Luigi DELIA, and Benoît GARNOT
Paris, Editions Imago, 2014, 216 pages
ISBN 978-2-84952-710-8
Price: 20 euros
Judicial torture aimed to extract a confession of a crime from a suspect—or even the names of potential accomplices—by inflicting severe, excruciating, and unbearable physical pain following a precise procedure. A heritage of Roman law, torture was reintroduced into Western criminal procedure in the 13thcentury. However, by the 18thcentury, it was abandoned and subsequently universally prohibited by international law.
Yet, over the past few decades, we have witnessed a clear regression as it has once again become a state practice in countries considered to be democracies, such as the United States. How can such an institution be understood and explained? To answer these questions, this volume, a collaborative work by historians, legal scholars, and philosophers, examines three major eras in succession: first, beginning in the 16thcentury, the contestation of judicial torture; then, its gradual disappearance in the 17th and 18thcenturies; and finally, its resurgence in the 20th and 21stcenturies, once thought to be unthinkable.
Contributors to this volume: Pascal Bastien, Norbert Campagna, Guillaume Coqui, Luigi Delia, Benoît Garnot, Hubert Hausemer, Dario Ippolito, Michel Porret, Elisabeth Salvi, Jean-Jacques Sarfati, Eric Wenzel.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
NORBERT CAMPAGNA, LUIGI DELIA, AND BENOÎT GARNOT
Introduction , 7
Part One
The Contestation of Torture (16th–18th Century)
GUILLAUME COQUI
England: Classical Utilitarianism Confronts Judicial Torture (Bentham and Beccaria) , 13
What Does Philosophy Say?, 13 ; Lines of Argument, 17 ; The Philosopher's Arguments, 19 ; Reversing the Question, 20 ; Utilitarianism and Torture, 22 ; Bentham Versus Beccaria: A Lesson in Utilitarianism, 26 ; The Objection of "Rule Utilitarianism", 28.
LUIGI DELIA
France: "The Torture Will Seem to You an Act of Humanity" – Diderot versus Beccaria , 35
Diderot's Perspective, 37 ; An Insidious Objection, 42.
NORBERT CAMPAGNA
Austria: Sonnenfels, Critic of Beccaria , 51
Beccaria, or the Absolute Rejection of Torture, 53 ; Sonnenfels, Critic of Beccaria, 58.
DARIO IPPOLITO
Naples: Judicial Torture and Criminal Trial in Enlightenment Legal Culture , 69
The Political Centrality of the Criminal Question, 69 ; Criminal Trial and Civil Liberty, 71 ; Torture, Despotism, Natural Law, 72 ; An Abolitionist "Practice", 76 ; Confession and Truth, 78.
ÉLISABETH SALVI
Swiss Confederation: Gabriel Seigneux de Correvon and the Abolition of Torture, 83
An Indictment Against Torture, 84 ; The "Infamous Crucible of Truth", 86 ; Abandoning Confession, 89 ; Law and Humanity, 91.
Part Two. The Abolition of Torture (18th Century)
ÉRIC WENZEL
France: Victory of the Philosophers or Victory of the Law?, 105
A Victory for the Abolitionist Struggle?, 105 ; The Ordinance of 1670 and the Decline of Judicial Torture, 107 ; The Intervention of Political Authorities, 110.
BENOÎT GARNOT
France: Judges Precede the Enlightenment, 115
A Highly Regulated Practice, 115 ; Magistrates or Enlightenment?, 118.
PASCAL BASTIEN
England: Physical Coercion in Criminal Procedure, 127
Judicial Torture: A Practice Outside the Law, 128 ; The "Peine Forte et Dure", 130.
MICHEL PORRET
Geneva: Torture as Merely a "Subject of Pure Theory", 139
Torture in the Republic, 140 ; The Abolition of 1738, 144 ; The Republican Penal Model, 145 ; Guiding Men with Moderation, 148.
Part Three. The Resurgence of Torture (20th–21st Century)
HUBERT HAUSEMER
Torture and the Rule of Law: Absolute Prohibition or Possibility of Exception?, 157
Arguments for Ticking-Time-Bomb Torture, 158 ; The Meaning of State Torture, 160 ; The Rule of Law and Ticking-Time-Bomb Torture, 162 ; Pragmatic Critiques and Philosophical Criteria, 165.
NORBERT CAMPAGNA
On Torture and Other Means of Making a Bomber Talk, 169
The Classic Scenario, 170 ; First Alternative Scenario: The Promise of Reward, 172 ; Second Alternative Scenario: The Truth of the Body, 178.
JEAN-JACQUES SARFATI
Conclusion, 187
SUGGESTED READING, 195
NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS, 207
Norbert Campagna is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Luxembourg.
Luigi Delia holds a PhD in Philosophy and is a program director at the Collège International de Philosophie.
Benoît Garnot is Professor of Early Modern History at the University of Burgundy.
Website:
http://www.editions-imago.fr/listeauteur.php?recordID=410&categorie=Histoire%20de
The volume gathers contributions by historians, legal scholars, and philosophers to examine the historical trajectory of judicial torture across three distinct periods. The text outlines the initial contestation of torture beginning in the sixteenth century, its gradual disappearance over the course of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and its unexpected resurgence in twentieth- and twenty-first-century democracies. By tracing these developments, the collaborative work investigates how such an institution can be understood and explained, looking closely at legal thought and political philosophy from the early modern era to contemporary times.
Readers interested in the history of criminal procedure, legal philosophy, and the evolution of state power may find this collective study relevant to their pursuits. The book addresses the arguments surrounding judicial torture, including utilitarian perspectives, Enlightenment critiques, and debates over exceptions within the rule of law. Scholars examining the intersections of law, humanity, and political authority will encounter detailed discussions concerning the shifting justifications and prohibitions of physical coercion across European and Western contexts.