Abstract: If on the one hand the evolution of the Italian sanctioning system has contributed to shifting attention from the criminal “fact” to the evaluation of the “person” to be punished, on the other it has also determined a change in the very concept of detention institution. Indeed, without any doubt, the historical-social evolution has influenced both the function of the penalty and the techniques used to punish the perpetrator of a crime. The transition from corporal punishments to prison sentences and up to alternative punishments, has accelerated the historical process that no longer placed the torture of the prisoner, physical suffering and punishment at the centre of the sentence, but replaced them with the humanization of the penalty. However, it took years to embrace the awareness that making a sentence human does not only mean avoiding corporal punishment, but reasoning about the limits and consequences of forced internment without any aim of social reintegration.

Key words: detention; imprisonment; society; punishment; resocialization

JEL codes: Z1