On 21 February 2025, Professor Alison Liebling’s new book manuscript was the subject of a day-long workshop at the British Academy in London. The Institute’s Centre for Penal Theory and Ethics supported the workshop, which was organised by the Centre’s Director Professor Leo Zaibert and Professor Antony Duff from the University of Stirling. Liebling’s book, ‘Aristotle’s Prison: A Search for Humanity and Justice’ was supported by a Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship that Liebling held from 2020 to 2023. It explores the moral environments of different prisons and how they affect prisoners’ survival and growth.
The book makes a significant new contribution both to penal theory and our understanding of prisons. Liebling argues that the current penal system has become damaging for everyone. However, she also distinguishes between prison environments that diminish their inmates, and a few notable examples of prison environments that enable prisoners to develop as individuals.
By synthesizing various studies on prison environments, Liebling empirically identifies the distinguishing features of exceptional prisons. Three prisons are used as case studies: one prison shifts from ‘suicide-prone’ to survivable, the second is actively damaging and violence-prone, and the third is outstanding or exceptional. In the last case study, some prisoners found ways to develop psychologically, emotionally, and morally, demonstrating how different moral environments impact their inner lives and future prospects.
To Liebling, these dynamics are relevant to a more general understanding of what matters to human beings and what helps them to flourish. Her case studies, and a larger scale analysis of prison moral climates, allow her to identify the threshold between humanity and inhumanity, and analyse the relationships between pain, suffering and change. Her main argument - that these differences are moral - tells us a great deal about how humans are ‘morally experiencing’ beings.
Professor Zaibert and Professor Duff were among several participants at the workshop.
Others included Kristel Beyens, Niki Lacey, Alice Ievins, Adrian Grounds, Shadd Maruna, Dirk van Zyl Smit, Sarah Skett, Peter Dawson, and Matt Matravers. Each participant provided feedback and commentary on a specific chapter, as well as the book in general.
“It was an amazing day,” said Liebling. “It was like fuel: warm and so intelligent. It was intense, generous, good humoured, and thought-provoking … academic life at its best!
“This is not just any book – it’s my life’s work. My good friend Susanne Karstedt described the writing process as a pilgrimage. I wanted it to point me in a direction. I was trying to extract the positive learning from all the research I have done. Specifically, I was looking for a solution to a set of existential problems linked to the alarming decline in prison quality over the last ten years. I have given it everything – it has both exhausted and shaped me in many ways, taking me in some unexpected directions.”
Professor Liebling is currently finishing the edits and aims to submit the book by the end of May 2025. Listen to this recent talk about the new book.
- Liebling (2024) What does a prison with ‘good lighting’ look like? https://paricenter.com/event/the-future-mind-a-conversation-with-alison-liebling/