Vol. extraordinario 6 (2023). Los sonidos de la horca: la literatura de patíbulo en Europa (y más allá). Coord. Juan Gomis

The term "literature of the gallows" refers to the vast and diverse body of printed material that, between the 16th century and the early 20th century, reported on public executions, thus amplifying the echoes of the punitive ritual that the state conceived as another manifestation of its power. It is a subject of long-standing study in English, French, or German historiography, but not so in Spanish, where it has proven difficult to distinguish its boundaries from broader editorial genres or thematic categories, such as chapbooks, news reports, or crime literature in general. The seven articles that make up this special issue present an approach to the literature of the gallows, understood, on one hand, as a transnational phenomenon, and on the other hand as a coherent and autonomous corpus, situated within the framework of criminal justice and the punitive ritual. The pursuit, capture, trial, and punishment of wrongdoers form the basis of these compositions, whose study necessitates a combination with other sources that not only help align the literary narrative with historical reality but also delve into the contribution of various narratives in constructing a multifaceted portrait of the criminal.