Status Updates From Dagboek van een beul

“A technically proficient and reliable executioner was himself the very embodiment of the sword of justice in action-swift, unwavering, deadly, but never appearing susceptible to arbitrary or gratuitous cruelty.”(67)

“The ritualized violence that the executioner administered on the community's behalf at once|(1) avenged victims; (2) ended the threat represented by dangerous criminals; (3) set a terrifying example; and (4) forestalled further violence at the hands of angry relatives or lynch mobs.“ 14