New from WLU press: Martel, Canada the Good: A Short History of Vice since 1500

A new release from Wilfrid Laurier University Press, Canada the Good: A Short History of Vice since 1500 by Marcel Martel .

Those interested in the history of norms and moral regulation, both legal and legal-pluralist, will want to take a look at this new work by Marcel Martel, the Avie Bennett Historica Chair in Canadian History at York University.

Here's what the publisher has to say:

Canada the Good considers more than five hundred years of debates and regulation that have conditioned Canadians’ attitudes towards certain vices. Early European settlers implemented a Christian moral order that regulated sexual behaviour, gambling, and drinking. Later, some transgressions were diagnosed as health issues that required treatment. Those who refused the label of illness argued that behaviours formerly deemed as vices were within the range of normal human behaviour.

This historical synthesis demonstrates how moral regulation has changed over time, how it has shaped Canadians’ lives, why some debates have almost disappeared and others persist, and why some individuals and groups have felt empowered to tackle collective social issues. Against the background of the evolution of the state, the enlargement of the body politic, and mounting forays into court activism, the author illustrates the complexity over time of various forms of social regulation and the control of vice.