Counter-/Narratives of Punishment and Criminal Justice

The intellectual starting point of the conference is that there is not one single but that there are many narratives of criminality. In discussing this heterogeneity and its transformation over time, the conference will focus on two kinds of narratives and their relation. First, individual stories: Crime and its individual, biographical background is a major issue in criminological research. When individual circumstances of offenses are discussed, e.g., during a trial, then the (alleged) offenders are not just passive participants. Instead, they construct corresponding stories and experience “un-/reasonable conviction” and “un-/just punishment”. Second, public narratives: Irrespective of any specific content, the criminal justice system and its ways to tackle crime are inherently connected to political discourses and public narratives of punishment and law. They provide trust and legitimacy on which the criminal justice system substantially depends. Since individual and public stories are interwoven, the conference focuses on their interrelation and (possible) contention, including a focus on the interplay of authoritative and counter-narratives.