Murders and Madness

Murders and Madness examines the French debate over crime and madness in the fin de siècle. Ruth Harris argues that psychiatric theories of human behaviour and new sociological interpretations of crime combined to undermine the traditional foundations of the penal system and helped to shape the new science of criminology. Traditional notions of free will and moral responsibility were eroded as new and often draconian strategies evolved from managerial practices developed mainly by medical men.

This book offers a detailed examination of the radical politique criminelle they devised. Through a series of case studies, she looks specifically at discussions of feminine hysteria and women's sexuality; male alcoholism and racial degeneration; crimes of passion, crowd violence and revolutionary politics.