Death by a Thousand Cuts
Timothy Brook
 Death by a Thousand Cuts investigates the use of slow slicing or lingchi, a form of torture and capital punishment practised in mid- and late-Imperial China from the tenth century until its abolition in 1905. Lingchi involved repeatedly slicing the convict's flesh beyond the point of death. By the time of the final imperial dynasty, the punishment could be meted out for an offence as simple as striking a teacher. The authors argue that this was more than a physical punishment, as the victim was sedated with opium and killed early in the process, but about denying the victim "somatic integrity" and denying them any hope of a life after death which, the authors argue, caused them to feel shame.