I supplizi e la sovranità ferita: sull’esecuzione pubblica come risoluzione del conflitto nell’opera di Michel Foucault.

Michel Foucault in his book Surveiller et punir has investigated the evolution of prison system and penal system from the ancient régime to the post-revolutionary era. In the first part of the volume public execution as both a deterrent and an educational technique is discussed; the body of the condemned is teared apart in front of the citizenship, this is the very moment when justice is served, the king shows himself through the ordeal and manifests his absolute power. Everyone who dares to violate the law can be considered an enemy; in this dimension felony and treason are put on the same level and even the most violent act of revenge by the king is fully justified.