[.ca] An Essay on Crimes and Punishments (ISBN 082831800X)

Law with Human Faces:
Originally published in 1764 anonymously,this essay is a lucid sprit of laws by a young enlightened Italian.His rational argument is based on humanism with anti-clerical and anti-despotic tendencies,which is so convincing and has been proved influential on the reformist movements. Before reading this work, I was nearly ignorant of the ancien regime realities.Thanks to it,the situations and struggles of people in those days have been more clearly revealed to me.

Freedom and Democracy:
This is an excellent translation of Beccaria's masterwork. The phrasing is clear and unaffected; and the format is pleasant and well-disposed. An Essay on Crimes and Punishments is one of the greatest treatises in the democratic tradition, a testament to human freedom and social justice. For students of law or political theory (of which I am one) this is an excellent account of some of the fundamental principles of democratic society and jurisprudence. Anyone who holds public office should be forced to read this book at gunpoint.

A comforting read:
Reading Beccaria's masterpiece was truly comforting, in a sense in which more recent works are not. In a world where increasing numbers of people are in favor of the death penalty, and where the rights of the person under trial sometimes don't seem to matter, this rational, lucid and yet quietly compassionate book was a worthwhile read. Its enlightened, ingenious and sometimes colloquial way of presenting arguments is even more satisfying when you place the book in its historical context (Beccaria's ideas were truly revolutionary by the time's standards) and learn that, after it was published, many works were written in reply to it, defending and trying to morally justify the use of torture in judicial proceedings. You should read this essay in order to fully grasp this great leap in the history of juridical thought and philosophy.