Forced to live: controlled forced feeding of political prisoners and the challenge to nation-states' civilising processes.

Vertigans, Stephen; Connolly, John; Dolan, Paddy

Abstract

Since the nineteenth century, struggles between state power and political prisoners' right to die have aroused considerable interest. State enforcement to 'make live' through force-feeding also raises important questions concerning processes that inform government approaches, often through methods considered to be brutal, and how these actions fit within perceptions of civilised behaviour. The social scientific focus of hunger strikes tends to be informed by Foucauldian bio-power and governmentality which we draw upon when applying insights from figurational sociology. These insights allow us to better capture shifting social processes and changing public attitudes and behaviours that weaken state control over life and death. Different empirical examples are drawn upon, namely prison based forced feeding programmes that are directed at international 'Islamicists', Irish republicans and British suffragettes. Comparing groups' levels of integration within controlling states' societies, highlight distinctions in power balances, layers of mutual identification and entwined public perceptions and state reactions that help explain the implementation, cessation or continuation of force-feeding.

Citation

VERTIGANS, S., CONNOLLY, J. and DOLAN, P. [2025]. Forced to live: controlled forced feeding of political prisoners and the challenge to nation-states' civilising processes. British journal of sociology [online], Early view. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.13196

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 31, 2025
• Online Publication Date: Feb 10, 2025
• Deposit Date: Feb 4, 2025
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 13, 2025
• Journal: British journal of sociology
• Print ISSN: 0007-1315
• Electronic ISSN: 1468-4446
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.13196
• Keywords: Barbarism; Civilising processes; Elias; Forced feeding; Hunger strikes; Political prisoners
• Public URL: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/2695528