Book review: H Annison, Dangerous Politics: Risk, Political Vulnerability and Penal Policy
| Author | Ailbhe O’Loughlin |
| Published date | 01 February 2017 |
| Date | 01 February 2017 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/1362480616670079 |
| Subject Matter | Book reviews |
Book reviews 105
possible therapeutic benefits that justice can deliver, the limitations and uncertainties
surrounding which victims can experience such benefits and under what circumstances
this can occur is examined critically. The reconciliation of parties involved in the vic-
timization, and whether this represents a form of justice, is discussed in Chapter 7.
Reconciliation is a debated concept and has the potential to take place at various different
levels. For the purposes of this chapter, it is the more exceptional offences or offenders
that come under discussion. Once more, the status of victims is recognized as problem-
atic, and the authors recognize the potential to subvert or omit victims’ voices from these
reconciliation initiatives.
The closing chapter guides readers through the preceding key arguments, paying par-
ticular attention to the three key themes of the book. It then makes a case for moving
towards a Cultural Victimology. The ideas around this are mapped out through the
authors’ focus on their own ‘critical gaze’ (p. 172) and consideration of ‘[w]itnessing and
bearing witness to victimology’ (p. 173).
One of the most engaging aspects of this emerging body of work revolves around
mediated images of victimization. Given the prominence of such images, from rolling
news coverage on a multitude of television channels to social media feeds, I expected
there to be more on this form of ‘visual victimology’, much like the authors’ previous
explorations into this theoretical field have done (Walklate et al., 2011). However, per-
haps this is where the authors hope others will pick up the discussion in developing and
applying cultural victimology to their own studies.
This is a thought-provoking book that challenges the reader to take a critical view to
understanding forms of harm that commonly sit outside everyday understandings of vic-
timization. There is certainly an appeal to using this as a textbook, particularly through
its clear structure and use of case studies, but it has a much broader appeal to those inter-
ested in criminology and victimology. It is a significant and welcome addition to victi-
mology, and I am sure that it will have an enduring appeal.
References
McGarry R and Walklate S (2011) The soldier as victim: Peering through the looking glass. British
Journal of Criminology 51(6): 900–917.
Tulloch J (2006) One Day in July: Experiencing 7/7. London: Little, Brown.
Walklate S (1990) Researching victims of crime: Critical victimology. Social Justice 17(3): 25–42.
Mawby and Walklate (1994) Critical-Victimology-International-Perspectives-London: Sage.
Walklate S, Mythen G and McGarry R (2011) Witnessing Wootton Bassett: An exploration in
cultural victimology. Crime, Media and Culture 7(2): 149–165.
H Annison, Dangerous Politics: Risk, Political Vulnerability and Penal Policy, Oxford University Press:
Oxford, 2015; 288 pp.: 9780198728603, £65.00 (hbk)
Reviewed by: Ailbhe O’Loughlin, University of York, UK
Harry Annison’s Dangerous Politics is an in-depth study of the ‘creation, contestation,
amendment, and abolition’ of the controversial indeterminate sentence of imprisonment
for public protection (IPP) (p. 3). The book addresses the important question, first posed
To continue reading
Request your trial