The Restorative Justice Apparatus: A Critical Analysis of the Historical Emergence of Restorative Justice

Abstract

Drawing on Michel Foucault’s theoretical reservoir, this article conceptualizes restorative justice (RJ) as an ‘apparatus’, that is, a dynamic ensemble of elements whose emergence is related to the development of a distinctive political rationality (ethopolitics). This approach enables a multidimensional comprehension of RJ, since it targets both discursive and non-discursive elements, their power/knowledge relations and subjugating effects. Furthermore, the article explores possibilities for an emancipatory RJ, against the subjective entrapment that the apparatus produces, offering some practical examples. Overall, this work aims to offer a theoretically engaged and critical scrutiny of RJ by using an underexploited analytical device – the apparatus – apt to make visible unexpected dimensions of this ‘new’ frontier of western penalty. This could enhance our understanding of the emergence and possible trajectories of RJ, by identifying risks and opportunities as well as tools for disentanglement from its most problematic institutional developments.