Torture Techniques Essay -- Essays Papers

Torture Techniques Throughout every period in history, people in society have been driven by panic and hysteria to use their faith in God as a reason to accuse, torture, and murder countless innocent people. Events in this cycle of inhumanity account for some of the darkest stains in human history. All forms of torture and punishment served as the primary means of forcing accused, inocent individuals to confess their involvement in the alleged occurrences and to reveal the names of accomplices. Throughout history, various forms of spiritual rituals, public humiliation, and pain induction, have been used to extract these false confessions from innocent individuals. Accused heretics could be punished through spiritual purification rituals performed by the church. After being accused of being a heretic, the church considered the body and soul of that individual to be corrupted, filthy, and possessed by the deviled. Because of this, the accused would have to undergo a harsh cleansing of the body and soul. The body would be washed with fire, boiling water, and rags made from harsh material. To cleanse the soul of the individual, he or she would be forced to swallow substances meant to eliminate evil spirits. The church accomplished this by forcing the accused to swallow scalding water, fire brands, coals, and soaps. This ritual evolved into the present day concept of washing the mouth out with soap.1 Severe public humiliation was another method of extracting confessions out of accused individuals. The most common and recognizable form of public humiliation was the stocks or pillories. With the head and hands fixed in the stocks, the accused was put on display for the entire village to jest, insult, and throw things at. Many ... ... http://www2.cybercities.com/s/shanmonster/witch/ (28 February 1999) - Michael Norton, "Townsfolk Kill Five People of Witchcraft," Associated Press, 23 January 1996. Bibliography - Dispelling Witches. Directed by Marnie Villari, 50 min. A&E Networks, 1993. Videocassette. - Malbrough, Ray. Charms Spells and Formulas. St. Paul, Minnesota: Llewellyn Publications, 1996. - Norton, Michael. "Townsfolk Kill Five People of Witchcraft," Associated Press, 23 January 1996. - Powell, Shantell. "Punishment, Torture, and Ordeal," The Witching Hours, 25 October 1998. http://www2.cybercities.com/s/shanmonster/witch/witches/grandier.html/ (28 February 1999). - Torture and death penalty instruments from the Middle Ages to the Industrial Era, http://www.cecut.org.mx/GALERIA/tortura/torture.htm (3 March 1999).