酷刑在人類文明史上有久遠的歷史，是對於身體施加的一種極端暴力。傳統公案裡的「官」與「吏」中，「官」多半有名姓可稽，而「吏」則鮮有名籍，更遑論其司法態度或心理思維，本文比較《檀香刑》與〈在流刑營〉兩部小說，透過劊子手的眼睛，可發現這個身分、角色的「人生哲學」使得權力的擁有者不再只是扁平的不具獨立人格角色，而富於鮮活飽滿的形象。本文試圖聆聽權力者的獨白，經由比較其故事內容、創作意識、小說表現手法、酷刑方式之外，並以權力展示的角度剖析劊子手的內心世界。

Torture in the human civilization has a long history, is an extreme violence inflicted on body. Two novels, "The Penalty of Sandalwood" and "ln the Penal Colony", are compared in this article to discover the identity and role of philosophy of life through the eyes of executioner. This article attempts to listen to the authority's monologue not only by means of comparing story content, creation consciousness, and expression techniques, but also analyzing executioner's inner world from the viewpoint of power demonstration.