Hard Time: Reforming the Penitentiary in Nineteenth-Century Canada

by Ted McCoy

Tracing the rise and evolution of Canadian penitentiaries in the nineteenth century, Hard Time examines the concepts of criminality and rehabilitation, the role of labour in penal regimes, and the problem of violence. Linking the lives of prisoners to the political economy and to movements for social change, McCoy depicts a history of oppression in which prisoners paid dearly for the reciprocal failures of the institution and of the reform vision. Revealing a deeply problematic institution entrenched in the landscape of Western society, McCoy redraws the boundaries within which we understand the penitentiary's influence.

340 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Ted McCoy is an Associate Professor in Sociology at the University of Calgary. He researches legal history and working-class history.

You can follow him on twitter @tedmccoy

Reviews

[Luke · Rating 1 out of 5]

This so-called history is far too infused with the author's Marxist ideology to have any value.