The Big Book of Pain: Torture & Punishment Through History

by Mark P. Donnelly

This unique study offers a look at the punishments and tortures administered to offenders in all historical periods. They include the peculiar punishments known as the ducking stool, the Scottish maiden, the pillory, the drunkard's cloak, and the scold's bridle, and unsavory punishments such as death by pressing, hanging, and boiling.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Death, Science, True Crime, Medieval, Reference

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[H Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting look at the historical, political, sociological, and economical sides of torture as perceived justice and/or a means of information gathering through fear and physical coercion.

[Jc · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book solidified my belief that humanity is the cruelest species on this planet bar none. No other Earth-based species has the capacity to willfully inflict pain upon its own species and other species than homo homo sapiens.

Throughout recorded history, humans have inflicted vast amounts of pain and suffering on other humans for a variety of reasons. Torture, information gathering and pure enjoyment of causing pain seem to be common threads through history.

The authors discuss various aspects of pain through the ages. Highlighted in detail are the methods and implements used to create that pain. The more technologically advanced humanity has become has led to advancements in methods and implements used to torture, maim and kill humanity.

This book is shocking yet eerily enjoyable. From the political, military and religious standpoints, infliction of pain for information gathering purposes serves little useful purpose. Yet, how many thousands of people have perished because of these standpoints.

The Salem witch trials, instigated by a few trouble causing female teenagers, resulted in how many unnecessary deaths. What happened to the teenagers who started all of this nonsense? I do not know because I have never been able to find that information.

Overall, I liked this book. The sequence of events flowed smoothly and the author wove together a great story of human-caused misery upon other humans.

This book is not for the faint-of-heart; but it should be read as a treatise on the depravity humans are capable of if allowed. We continue to see this depravity today.


Happy Reading,

[Todd Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

What could be more fun than an illustrated book about torture throughout the ages? Well, probably a lot of things actually, but The Big Book of Pain does offer insight into the vast amount creative energy that humans have expended in order to inflict suffering on one another. The book is historical in nature, focusing primarily on the time leading up to the middle ages.

While society has become somewhat more civilized in the intervening years (we no longer break people on the wheel or stretch them on a rack, for example), torture is still alive and well despite overwhelming evidence that it doesn’t work. The rack, boot, thumb screws, garrote, stock and dunking chair may be obsolete, but in their place we have sleep deprivation, temperature extremes, isolation, loud music and waterboarding. And what would a secretive policy be without a creepy, Orwellian title … enhanced interrogation.

Welcome to your annual proctological exam … would you like the regular colonoscopy or the enhanced colonoscopy? Mwah ha haa ...

The other thing that has changed is that torture used to be a public spectacle on full display for the masses to witness. Today, state sponsored torture is done in secret away from the prying eyes of the public and media. It’s almost as if they lack pride in their work.

[Jennifer Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am one sick individual. Had I been around in the middle ages when torture was at it's zenith, I would have been more inclined to put my engineering skills to work at, oh I don't know, indoor plumbing maybe? This is what happens in a society where women are repressed and men are allowed to run the world.

[Steelwhisper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent resource! Superbly dry authorial voice, with lots of essential information and anecdotes.

[Emma Sea]

In ten weeks, despite much effort, I only made it to page 33, as the author's voice was not to my taste. But I'll keep it as a reference. I don't have enough knowledge to assess its depth, but it certainly seems extensive.

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Could have used a lot more editing.

[Bethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Eighteenth-century prisons, like some of their modern counterparts were privately owned, profit making ventures; but rather than billing the government for their services, it was the prisoners themselves who bore the cost of their Incarceration."


This book was an array of grotesque methods on not to kill people but to maime them for life. Some only put stress on the brain making a prisoner' (which could sometimes be a boy taking stealing an apple) go mad with what they went through, others left the prisoner in such a bad way that they would die some days later while in excruciating agony.

It made me open my eyes a little to the repetitive steam train of blame and torture that happens still to this day in certain places around the world. This book was fascinating and maybe a go to read for me in the future.

[Ross Macartney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book for those with a morbid sense of curiosity.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

My bestie never looked at me the same after I finished this

[Funky Tomo77 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gory but fascinating history of torture.
Most of the worst devices dreamed up by the Catholic Church . Not for the squeamish!! Read in 2 days , morbid but so interesting!

[Ayla Derammelaere · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always been intruiged by torture, not as a way to do it myself but to understand how we get to this point. This book answered my questions : it gives an overview of a variation of torture tecnics and places it into time, even mentioning how the people reacted to this. It made me feel quiet and pensive, trying to understand a side of humans that we wish to pretend doesn't exist.
"Wherever weak, fearful people struggle to retain their grip on power, there is an almost unlimited capacity to inflict pain and suffering in the name of the greater good." - Mark Donnelly & Daniel Diehl

"What all those present knew that the prisoner did not, was that there were 5 distinct phases of torture :
1. The prisoner was threatened with torture.
2. He was shown the implements of torture.
3. He was stripped and blindfolded.
4. He was tortured.
5. He was given another chance to confess.
If they still insisted on their innocence, phase 4 and 5 would be repeated i definitly, until he or she either talked or died.
This process was administered without distinction to age, sex or social condition and the methods of torture used were completely random, being limited only by the whim of the Inquisitor, the inspector and the type of equipment available." - Mark Donnelly & Daniel Diehl

The book gives us a historical view of what types of torture was being used, both in time and by a certain people. It shows us how torture evolved together with our knowledge of how the human body works and what it can endure.
"Before physical brutality can qualify as torture, it must be inflicted with very specific goals in mind.. when an assault is not happening under any kind of governmental, military or judicial authority, the assault is not technically torture.. By bringing a legal sanction into the equation, those involved in ordering or administring torture provide themselves with the advantage of removing the taint of personal guilt :"I was only following orders." " - Mark Donnelly & Daniel Diehl

"If we are to be completly honest, without at least the threat of physical violence and/or imprisonement, virtually no perpetrator would confess to their crime(s) and society would break down completly... That mankind has done so, is a fact. That we have known for more than 2000 years that confessions extracted under severe torture are virtually worthless and that torture as punishement does nothing to deter crime, makes this fact all the more tragic and appalling." - Mark Donnelly and Daniel Diehl
-> I think this sums up a lot about what is written in the book : when society has a lot of worries and our rulers are scared or anxious about the future, we bend our rules, we look for a scapegoat and, depending on how bad our own living circumstances have become, we are willing to harm another human being for the sake of our own well-being.

"In its earliest form, however, torture - in some greater or lesser form, as befits the crime - was usually practiced as a means of punishing actual wrongdoers.. But as time went on, and as the motive behind torture evolved from simple punishment to the need to extract information, the approach to the process of torture evolved." - Mark Donnelly & Daniel Diehl
-> torture started it out as a means to punish wrong-doers, with the punishment getting more severe with every following miss-step they've made. When the Cathlic Church became a huge influence in the world, a person could only be found guilty when they confessed (you can not punish an innocent) and the only way to be sure someone has done/was bad, was when they confessed. This shows us how a logical way of thinking that sounds resonable and sounds like it is in place to protect people, is used to explain away the use of torture : believing that God would keep an innocent safe, they assumed only the guilty would be convinced to confess when being tortured.

Not all torture was used against someone else : "Suffering - as an act of redemption (ex. flagellation) - became a religious act... Consequently, accepting a good flogging from the local priest, or inflicting self-flagellation, became nearly as common as means of expiating one's sins as going on pelgrimage or fasting." - Mark Donnelly & Daniel Diehl
-> the problem with these types of actions, is that certain forms of torture lost their aversion and became 'normal'

One of the things that we need to realize, is that the people wanted to see this happen, they wanted to be sure that, while living their own hard lives, wrong-doers would be punished.
"The same principle of sadism in ever-increasing doses applies equally to the mob as it does to torture masters and Inquisitors General... Satisfying the desire of the masses to see social misfits strung-up or dismembered was the motivating factor in making executions public in the first place." - Mark Donnelly & Daniel Diehl

We need to be careful and don't allow ourselves to think torture is a thing of the past : in some (third world) countries this is still reality for prisonners but we even don't need to look that far away : during war, our levels of humanity lower since we see our enemies as less than human ; we are in need to safeguard our ways of life so we are 'aloud' to torture those who threathen it. This happens in prison cells (Abu Graib Correctional Facility) but experiments in psychology have taught us that (almost) everyone is capable of torturing another (human) being in the 'right' circumstances.
We need to keep thinking about our actions and warn ourselves not to justify actions because 'others do it aswell' or 'I was told to do it'.

[Katia M. Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book detailing the types of torture device employed through history as well as looking into the concept of torture and its effectiveness. This book is not as gruesome as it sounds, but is rather a well thought out and researched exploration into the ways the human race has developed to hurt itself. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in interrogation, historical weaponry and the psychology of pain.

[eppie b · Rating 2 out of 5]

quite repetitive. the last 30% just goes over what has already been discussed in the first 70%. very interesting in parts. more case studies would have been nice. torture in the modern world is not discussed at all, no mention of guantanamo bay or any other atrocities committed in the last 15 years.

[Rick Farmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book to read if you're interested in just how messed up humanity was and still is to this day if you fuel the fire of paranoia, power and greed of political leaders. It's amazing what people will actually do if they are simply told by a higher power. Interesting read

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating history and I learned lots of handy tips and hints ... not that I'll ever need them, I'm sure ...

[Janet Jay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting subject matter but not... Just not interesting to me in terms of writing style, historical citations & general novelty of subject matter. There are better books for this.

[Courtney Stoker · Rating 1 out of 5]

Shallow and dry.

[Mirjam]

Well! Color me turned on.

[Robert Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I picked this up, I was looking essentially for an encyclopedia of torture methods, perhaps presented chronologically and in their historical context. That’s not quite what this is. It does certainly feature a large number of such methods, some of which are described in text but most of which are also accompanied by either photographs of historic artifacts or artists’ renditions of the devices in practice. But rather than just being a catalog of devices and methods, it’s a much more complete history of torture through the centuries. It has a European focus through most of the book but does includes some chapters on other regions throughout the world.

And honestly, it’s fascinating. Perhaps bits of it can be a little repetitive (because as inventive as humans can be when it comes to the things we do to each other, we can also be lazy enough to not reinvent the wheel when we don’t need to), but overall, it presents a succinct history not only of the devices and the methods but also of the codes of laws, legal and moral reasoning, and so forth that have led to the increases and decreases and evolutions of such practices throughout history.

My biggest complaint, I think, is that the authors define the subject a bit more narrowly than I think would have been best. They discuss only legally-sanctioned punitive practices used either in punishment for violation of civil laws or, in some cases, religious doctrines. Obviously that’s an important topic and a big piece of the subject, but I would have personally preferred had they defined the scope of their topic more broadly and included extrajudicial (or even criminal) cases as well.

At the end of the day, while it wasn’t quite as encyclopedic as I was hoping for in some ways, it did end up treating me to a rich and fascinating history that kept me turning the pages well into the evening, so I’d heartily recommend it.

[Петър Стойков · Rating 2 out of 5]

Изтезанията са винаги интересна тема, но за съжаление тази книга не е мястото, където да се запознаете изоснови с нея.

Не става ясно съвсем отначало, но докато стигне човек до края разбира, че цялата книга е написана основно с идеята да се покаже колко кофти е Западната цивилизация и колко злини е причинила на себе си и на света.

Погледът върху историята на изтезанията е изключително тесен - разгледана е практически само Западна Европа, от античността до Ренесанса, а за целия останал свят/история е отредена една глава накрая, в която се споменават само Япония, Китай и Индия. Информацията за държавите, които са описани изобщо е плитка и малко (самата книга е доста кратка), изпуснати са много неща, за които даже аз знам просто от обща култура.

Въпреки, че робството се споменава инцидентно и в другите исторически периоди, има цяла глава за тихоокеанската търговия с черни африкански роби. Естествено, търговията на ислямския свят с черни роби преди това не влиза в сферата на вниманието на автора.

Последната глава в книгата е най-дразнеща, защото се занимава с "изводи" за съвремието и именно тук се споменават факти от по-близката история. Но не си мислете, че става дума за деянията на нацистите, сталинистите, маоистите, за концлагерите, Гулаг, Хунвейпините и т.н. Тази глава е просто поле за изява на антиамериканизма на автора, който плямпа за войните на САЩ в Близкия изток и споменава Макарти (не става ясно в каква връзка, тъй като той не е измъчвал никого) повече пъти от Хитлер.

[Mike Nesemann · Rating 1 out of 5]

My interest in torture was piqued allusions to the Inquisition in a ballet so I thought I’d give this book a try. The writing is clever, but the blend of airy cynicism and snickery became tedious fairly quickly. The discussion of why torture was done was sometimes circuitous as in when they ascribed it to kings’ needs to keep populations in line, after positing that such public displays were necessary to ensure the people felt secure and that the laws were enforced.

Soon the authors came out with inexplicable blunders, e.g., Aristotle being the author of the Latin phrase, In vino veritas. Uhhh….Aristotle was Greek. A 15 minute Google search came up with several references to the phrase’s lineage from Greek philosophers, but nada about Aristotle. Later they confused Wergild (the monetary compensation due to the kindred of a slain person) with Danegeld (an Anglo-Saxon tax levied to pay off Danish (Viking) invaders. Granted these are minor inaccuracies and wouldn’t necessarily detract from the book’s overall thrust, but I stopped reading at that point. If they can’t be bothered to get such minor, easily checked, facts straight, this book wasn’t worth my time.

[Anoop Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is really a grim book. Shows you a side of humanity that many are saying we left behind with our dark ancestors, but the book even shows a few examples of how it's still alive and well, just a lot less public than it used to be.

In a sense, even the book makes its money on some level by displaying and explaining to its readers, spectacles of human suffering knowing that our dark brains desire to see images of human suffering.

The only reason I gave this books a 4 and not a 5 is that while it showed a plethora of information on the world's past as a time of torture supported by the government, it did not have much info on modern day torture employed behind the scenes, such as the USA(other than Abu Ghraib) and Saudi Arabia. In all fairness, that was possibly much more for their own safety than any support of these nations by the authors.

[Shahira8826 · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Big Book of Pain: Torture & Punishment Through History" by Mark P. Donnelly and Daniel Diehl was a very interesting - and surprisingly empathetic - read.
You can tell an amazing amount of research went into this work, and yet the authors' writing style made this whole book as captivating as a novel.
I particularly appreciated the first and the last sections, where the sociological and psychological origins of torture are analyzed, and the connections between historical research and the modern and contemporary setting are highlighted.
Now I'm really intrigued and I want to check out the authors' other works.

[James Flynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is packed full of information and, a bonus in my opinion, also packed full of pictures. If you’re after an extensive guide on the history of torture, look no further.

The prose isn’t amazing, but it’s lucid and accessible. Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Medieval England, China, India and Africa are all documented.

I’m thinking about reading another book by the same authors after this: Eat Thy Neighbour.

[Ayoub · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 solid stars.
ohhhhh man this book, not for the fainthearted of course. You just can't go through it if you can't handle graphic content, cuz not only do you read torture in this book, but you also see illustrations of each and every method or torture talked about in the book.
it's brilliantly written, a page turner and wildly disturbing.

[I J Haworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tortuous Account of Cruelty

The ingenuity of human barbarity is given a thorough outing in this graphic account of torture through the ages. It doesn't reveal much on motive, reason or psychology other than how despicable human beings can be.

[Democe Vallegos]

Okay I've just spent 10 minutes doing the stupid security check to see I'm not a computer how do I buy the audio version of this book from this site that's what I typed into Google and this site says it has a copy of this book in audio format how do I purchase it?

[Ruthann Breitenfeld · Rating 4 out of 5]

Researchers did a great job

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5