The Death Penalty: An American History

by Stuart Banner

Book Overview

The death penalty arouses our passions as does few other issues. Some view taking another person's life as just and reasonable punishment while others see it as an inhumane and barbaric act. But the intensity of feeling that capital punishment provokes often obscures its long and varied history in this country.

Now, for the first time, we have a comprehensive history of the death penalty in the United States. Law professor Stuart Banner...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674010833
• ISBN13: 9780674010833
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 408 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Complementary readings to Banner's interesting book

There are already several good reviews on this book, so I will only suggest reading the following books on the USA in addition to Banner's: A) Dealing with constitutional and political ideas: 1) Constitutional History of the American Revolution by John Phillip Reid; 2) "America's Constitution: A Biography" by Akhil Reed Amar; 3) "Liberty's Blueprint: How Madison and Hamilton Wrote The Federalist, Defined the Constitution, and Made Democracy Safe for the World" by Michael Meyerson; and 4) Lincoln's Constitution by Daniel A. Farber. B) Other books chosen with an approach historically impressionistic: 5) "The Churching Of America, 1776-2005: Winners And Losers In Our Religious Economy" by Roger Finke and Rodney Stark; 6) "American Colonies. The settling of North America", by Alan Taylor; and 7) "Battle cry of freedom. The Civil War Era" by James M. McPherson.

A Superb, Even-handed History of Capital Punishment

It's a testament to the balance found in Stuart Banner's history of the death penalty in the U.S. that I'm still unsure where he stands on the controversial issue. If I had to take a position, I would say that he's probably against it, but even after reading his three-hundred page book I can't be sure. That's a remarkable feat for a subject matter that immediately unbalances many people.But "The Death Penalty: An American History" has other virtues. The book is scholarly, yet still an easy read for any interested layman; it is comprehensive, but doesn't get bogged down in details. Banner begins with capital punishment as practiced in colonial America and ends with public attitudes and constitutional issues in the late twentieth century. While the book basically follows a straightforward chronology, its chapters are arranged thematically.Some of the most interesting parts of the book are in the beginning. How Banner describes public opinion toward the death penalty in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the way executioners then -- who often were killing a man for the first and only time in their lives -- handled their duties, and the relationship between the public who viewed the execution and the condemned man, were all very fascinating to me.But no part of this history is boring. Banner does a remarkable job of sustaining interest even when the book turns to modern times, where the history of the death penalty focuses more on legal and abstruse matters. Banner always clarifies the issues at hand, explaining clearly and objectively the importance of what he is writing about. I cannot recommend this book too highly. If you have any interest in the death penalty, read it.

Balanced look at a controversial subject

Stuart Banner has taken on one of the more politically volatile subjects in American history and come up with a well-written book that explores the death penalty's development in this country and the related controversies.In the colonial era there were no prisons, so execution - primarily by hanging - was the only option for a myriad of crimes: not just murder, but arson, rape, burglary and in some cases, acts like blasphemy. The hangings were public events that were widely attended by men, women and children. As prison provided an alternative punishment, execution began to be used only for the most serious crimes, and eventually began to be done in a more private forum and by newer, more "humane" methods.Banner covers all these issues well and with such an objective approach it is difficult to even see what side of the issue he is on. That's what helps make this book so great: with Banner's balanced approach, you never get the feeling he is pushing either a pro- or anti-death penalty agenda. Balance by itself would not be enough, but Banner also is a good writer and this book is a fascinating read. Whether you are for the death penalty or against it, you should read this book. It probably won't change your mind, but it will give you much more insight as to why we use the death penalty like we do.

A History of Popular Sentiment About the Death Penalty

Prof. Banner draws on legal sources, the text of sermons and newspaper accounts to examine the evolution of popular sentiment about the death penalty over the past four centuries. I found the book enlightening on several different levels. First, changes in popular views about the rightness of the death penalty. Second, the co-evolution of popular feeling of what is "right" and the law itself. This gave me something to think about relative to the old debate about the law as a living thing vs. "strict constructionism" that the law (that is the basic law (constitution) and basic principles) are what we think the founding fathers meant when they wrote it. Third, an interesting sidelight was the discussion of the emergence of long-term imprisonment as an alternative to the death penalty in the early 19th century. Finally, the discussion of the meaning behind the gradual change from public executions to executions witnessed only by a few -- a reflection of general discomfort about the death penalty was another interesting line of evidence that I had never considered before reading this book.

A balanced, and well-researched overview of the subject

Having read a number of books on the subject, I would have to say that this book is about the best, providing an excellent overview of capital punishment in America. Containing recent data as well as historical accounts, the author paints a vivid picture of how capital punishment has evolved over the past three hundred years in this country.