Allan Cochrane and Deborah Talbot (eds), Security: Welfare, Crime and Society
| DOI | 10.1177/0004865812443769d |
| Published date | 01 August 2012 |
| Date | 01 August 2012 |
| Subject Matter | Book Reviews |
289
twenty-first century book of this nature – even just raising initial questions regarding
how gender might be enacted and experienced both similarly and differently in a virtual
world would have provided a platform for later debate and discussion. More critical
engagement with some concepts would also have been useful, and particularly consid-
eration of these in changing historical contexts. At times there seemed to be descriptions
and lists of ‘facts’ with comparatively little critical analysis. As an example, observations
are made regarding the high levels of mental health problems apparent in women’s
prisons without any discussion of whether and how these might be associated with
historical stereotypes perceiving women offenders as ‘mad’ rather than ‘bad’.
I also felt there were limitations in terms of references to significant criminological
writers. While such important contributors to feminist thinking as Pat Carlen and
Sandra Walklate were well cited, others were not even referenced for readers to track
down themselves – two immediate examples springing into my mind being Liz Kelly’s
extensive work in the sexual violence field and Meda Chesney-Lind’s contributions
regarding young women’s delinquency. Admittedly, Davies herself notes that she will
no doubt be criticised for various omissions, but I do think greater referencing of more
key writers in the field would have made this a fuller and richer introductory resource.
Despite these limitations and omissions, there is nevertheless much to commend
this book. It is organised and presented in a very useful way to encourage active
rather than passive reading of the material, through the inclusion of many questions
that could be applied to local cases and publications. It is also excellent in suggesting
that many unanswered, even impossible, questions still exist, as well as highlighting the
longevity of some historical concepts and observations – this Davies achieves by demon-
strating how some features of long-standing duration (such as gender stereotypes) are
still outstanding in terms of their continuing significance. Above all, this book boldly
attempts to accomplish what many of us have said was necessary for a long time, a
single, accessible volume exploring ways in which gender-awareness challenges trad-
itional approaches to both criminal offending and victimisation. For attempting such
an endeavour, and succeeding in so many respects, Pamela Davies does indeed deserve
congratulations.
Jan Jordan
Institute of Criminology/Te Pou Haratutanga, School of Social and Cultural Studies, Victoria
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