Abstract
The crisis of the modern paradigm of justice has given rise to a new imago Iustitiae: the restorative justice. This essay examines several genealogical trajectories underlying this new model, which first emerged in theoretical discourse during the 1980s. The analysis explores restorative justice as both a theoretical and practical approach that radically departs from the purely retributive function of punishment. It is oriented toward the reparation and reconstruction of relational and social bonds, placing the victim at the center of the process. In particular, the essay reconstructs two collateral but illuminating trajectories that contribute to a more complex understanding of restorative justice. First, through feminist literature on vulnerability, a notion of the victim is delineated — one that is intimately connected to the restorative justice revolution. Second, the relationship between neoliberal governmentality and restorative justice is examined.