In 2021, the Norwegian legal sociologist Thomas Mathiesen passed away. Mathiesen was a force within Norwegian and international sociology of law, and his countless publications are still being read and discussed at the Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law today.
Mathiesen’s vast contribution includes groundbreaking research and theorizing on topics such as security, surveillance, refugees, police and prisons. Professor, criminologist and Head of the Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law, Helene, O. I. Gundhus, recalls a seminar which was held after Mathiesen’s passing.
In the wake of the seminar, the idea emerged to create a special issue dedicated to his memory. The special issue was published under Justice, Power and Resistance in the autumn 2023, and the editors are Gundhus and Peter Scharff Smith. In addition to research articles, the issue also contains commemorations reflecting upon Mathiesen as a researcher, and as a friend.
An incredibly kind person
Gundhus had a close professional relationship to Mathiesen. He was her supervisor when she wrote her PhD in the early 2000s. She divulges that Mathiesen had many good attributes that not always became apparent for those who only knew him as a researcher.
– He was perhaps more conclusive in the public realm, his curiosity wasn’t always as noticeable, tells Gundhus.
Thomas Mathiesen (1933–2021)
- Studied sociology at the University of Wisconcin (1953-1955)
- Defended his doctoral thesis The Defences of the Weak at the University of Oslo in 1965
- Honorary professor at Lund University in 2003
- Wrote many books and articles on a broad selection of topics
- Received many awards in his lifetime
- His books have been translated to, among others, Swedish, Danish, German, English, Italian, Spanish, Serbian and Chinese.
She believes that one of Mathiesen’s strongest qualities as a supervisor was how open, curious and explorative he was. Additionally, she describes him as a skilled debater, and one who loved a good discussion. He was often at the department, and his door was open to everyone. Colleague and legal sociologist, Peter Scharff Smith, also describes Mathiesen as a friendly and dedicated person. ?
– It is my impression that he was an incredibly kind person. I agree that he was very engaged, positive and accommodating. Professionally, he was very little one-track minded, explains Scharff Smith.?
Activist and pioneer
One of Mathiesen’s most famous contributions to the sociology of law was his monograph Prison on Trial from 1972. It evaluates and challenges the prison as an institution, concluding that prisons should, in the long run, cease to exist. His critical viewpoints are perhaps one of the things that have made Mathiesen so renowned, and which has helped defined sociology of law as a field of practice. Scharff Smith applauds Mathiesen’s ability to apply sociological research onto legal questions:
– He always viewed the prison as part of society, not as an isolated phenomenon, explains Scharff Smith.
– Despite a lot of activism and radical ideas in the department at the time, Mathiesen still met substantial resistance, not least from colleagues and academics, says Gundhus.
Undeterred by this resistance, Mathiesen continued his work, and was central in the formation of The Norwegian Association for Penal Reform (KROM), which unites prisoners, prison employees and researchers around the common goal of more human penal policy. The association is still working towards reform in the correctional system, and functions as a voice for previous and current prisoners.
Togehter with Ingrid Lundeberg, Scharff Smith has contributed with an article examining the relationship between citizen and state in Nordic countries. In line with Mathiesen’s own research, they discuss how this relationship manifests within prisons. When asked whether Mathiesen is still as relevant, Scharff Smith is sure:
– Absolutely. Definitely. ?
Future research
In Gundhus’ contribution to the special issue, she builds upon Mathiesen’s research on risk prediction and criminal justice policy. She notices a clear connection between Mathiesen’s own research and the trial lecture she delivered for her PhD in 2006:
– It really shows that, for my part, I have been inspired by him for many years, because some of the thoughts I have in this article are also thoughts I had in the lecture for my PhD.
When Gundhus contemplates future research at the department, she sees that Mathiesen’s themes are still highly relevant. She points to crime control of youth, and particularly the political emphasis on crime networks, as important areas for future research. Scharff Smith adds that Mathiesen’s dedication to social change, his interest in practice and to reform the justice system and its institutions, are particularly inspiring today – and tomorrow.
See also
Articles in the special issue
- Academic, activist and empirical scholar: the legacy of Thomas Mathiesen, Helene O.I. Gundhus and Peter Scharff Smith
- Selective navigation: risk prediction cultures in criminal justice practices, Helene O.I. Gundhus
- Solidarity, marginalised groups, and COVID-19 lockdowns: censoriousness and penal exceptionalism in Norwegian and Danish prisons during the pandemic, Ingrid Rindal Lundeberg and Peter Scharff Smith
- Police abolition and transformative justice in the footsteps of Thomas Mathiesen’s penal abolition, Ida Nafstad
- Transitional justice and terrorism: socio-legal reflections on the problem of trials, perpetrator responsibility and accountability, Kristin Bergtora Sandvik
- Thomas Mathiesen in our view, Kristian Anden?s and Knut Papendorf
- Resisting the spiral of silence: reflections on Thomas Mathiesen’s contributions to surveillance studies, social silencing and abolitionism, Victoria Canning
- Thomas Mathiesen as a public intellectual, Katja Franko
- Reaching the unreachable through action research? Thomas Mathiesen and the Nordic socio-legal tradition, Annette Olesen and Ole Hammerslev