Binding Men

Binding Men tells stories about men, violence and law in late Victorian England. It does so by focusing upon five important legal cases, all of which were binding not only upon the males involved but also upon future courts and the men who appeared before them. The subject matter of Prince (1875), Coney (1882), Dudley and Stephens (1884), Clarence (1888) and Jackson (1891) ranged from child abduction, prize-fighting, murder and cannibalism to transmitting gonorrhoea and the capture and imprisonment of a wife by her husband. Each case has its own chapter, depicting the events which led the protagonists into the courtroom, the legal outcome and the judicial pronouncements made to justify this, as well as exploring the broader setting in which the proceedings took place. In so doing, Binding Men describes how a particular case can be seen as being a part of attempts to legally limit male behaviour.The book is essential reading for scholars and students of crime, criminal law, violence, and gender. It will be of interest to those working on the use of narrative in academic writing as well as legal methods. Binding Men’s subject matter and accessible style also make it a must for those with a general interest in crime, history and, in particular, male criminality.

"From the moment I started to read this book, I knew it was something special. Masculinity and criminal justice are lacking in academic attention, not least historically, and this book fills the gap nicely. Its eloquent descriptions of the cases and contexts, coupled with its excellent explanations of terminology and the addition of interesting pictures from the times, make it a book that anyone could pick up and read, and was truly fascinating. I would recommend it highly." - Jennifer Sloan, Sheffield Hallam University

Lois S Bibbings Senior Lecturer, University of Bristol Law School, honorary member, Centre for Ethics in Medicine, University of Bristol. She researches gender and violence. Her previous monograph was Telling Tales About Men: Conceptions of Conscientious Objectors to Military Service During the First World War (MUP, 2009).