History Of Responsibility Research Articles

Radical Nostalgia

Radical Nostalgia

Responsible History, by Antoon de Baets.

<i>Responsible History</i>, by Antoon de Baets.

Les fondements historiques de la responsabilité pénale

Law is based on the fact that responsibility is the foundation of all forms of social life. Echoing that of mankind, the history of responsibility has been enriched by all the schools of though which contributed to the elaboration of the notion of Justice. Firstly, we will examine the fundamental contribution of roman criminal law, which marked the end of the system of vindication installing in its place a regime of personal responsibility. We will then, focus on some concepts such as: tribal mentality and the organisation of society into clans, that came from the Franks. Covering the period that begins with the Middle Ages and streches through the Ancien Régime, authors emphasize the influence of christian morality, and the dimension of transcendence that this mentality imposed on criminal justice. Finally, they discuss the secular reform of criminal law which accompanied the 18th century and the emerging through the 19th century of a powerful medical science, witch progressively took on the status of actor in the judiciary system.