In Russian and French Prisons: 6 (Collected Works of Peter Kropotkin) - Hardcover

Kropotkin, Peter

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0921689993 ISBN 13: 9780921689997

Publisher: Black Rose Books, 2024

Synopsis

Nearly a century has passed since Kropotkin wrote In Russian and French Prisons, yet his criticisms of the penal system have lost none of their relevance. Prisons- far from reforming the offender, or deterring crime- are, in themselves, “schools of crime”. Every year, thousands of prisoners are returned to society without hope, without a trade, or without any means of subsistence, and statistics show that once a man has been in prison he is likely to return. Moreover, the new offense is likely to be more serious than the first.

Although Kropotkin makes extensive use of the memoirs of former prisoners and the works of contemporary penologists, it is his own experience in prison--he spent five years behind bars, two in Russia, three in France--that gives this book its power. He shows from first-hand knowledge the immense human suffering caused by prison life: how it destroys the mind and body, how it degrades and humiliates, how it perverts the prisoner’s character and robs him of his dignity, how it reduces him to the condition of a caged animal, how his whole life is subjected to a deadly mechanical routine, how everything is done to break his spirit and kill his inner strength.

In Russian and French Prisons is the 6th volume of The Collected Works of Peter Kropotkin.

About this title

About the Author

Peter Kropotkin (1842-1921) was a renown Russian scientist and anarchist philosopher and activist who lectured across Europe and North America and published widely. His many books include Words of a Rebel and Fields, Factories and Workshops.

Edition details

• Publisher: Black Rose Books
• Publication date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0921689993
• ISBN 13: 9780921689997
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 387