One aspect of violence covered in the book is the beating of children. Although the practice is now unacceptable in many societies, the “spare-the-rod-spoil-the-child” mentality and approach to child rearing was once the norm and used by parents and teachers alike to discipline children. During their research, Fiske and Rai found many parents from the past who expressed concern that a child’s “moral development” might suffer if corporal punishment is withheld.
In the case of “spousal abuse”, the authors also discovered that perpetrators are convinced that they are in the right. Fiske and Rai found that many abusers “feel entitled – even obligated – to use violence to redress wrongs that they perceive themselves to have suffered, and to sustain what seems to them to be the right kind of relationship.”
Other historic uses of violence to redress perceived wrongs are illustrated in the book, including the burning of witches, the killing of adulterers, and even “honor suicides” committed by those who believed they had failed to do their duty.