CFP: Capital and Corporal Punishment in Anglo-Saxon England

CFP: Capital and Corporal Punishment in Anglo-Saxon England

44th International Congress on Medieval Studies
7-10 May 2009
Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo MI

AND

International Medieval Congress
13-16 July 2009
University of Leeds, Leeds UK

Execution, mutilation, and bodily punishment permeate our understanding of
Anglo-Saxon judicial practice. In addition to the Old English law codes
that prescribe death and mutilation for criminal offenders, physical
penalties figure prominently in biblical exegesis and theological
discourse, in hagiographical and literary texts, in works of art, and in
the archaeology of the pre-Conquest landscape.

We are currently seeking papers for both Kalamazoo and Leeds 2009. These
sessions will offer an interdisciplinary approach to the role of capital
and corporal punishment in Anglo-Saxon England. We seek papers that
consider the legal, practical, theological, and ethical considerations
that surrounded the sentencing of offenders. Explorations of individual
penalties, specific texts, artistic or archaeological evidence, or the
wider context of physical punishment are also welcome. Please submit
abstracts for twenty-minute papers by 15 September to:

Nicole Marafioti
Cornell University
259 Goldwin Smith Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853 USA
njm28@cornell.edu
(607) 277-4432