Ways to categorize prison literature

Inmates & Literature

The Role of Literature in the Life of an Inmate

For individuals who face incarceration there are so many things to lose; homes, relationships, privacy, opportunities, etc. In an institutionalized setting personal identity often gets shadowed by group identity. In the same way institutional structure and the need for ensuring inmate and public safety can take precedence over the rehabilitation process. Providing inmates with literature that promotes learning and personal reflection gives these individuals an opportunity to take responsibility for their own transformation. Literature promotes freedom of thought, reflection and the consideration of other possibilities/realities. It can provide individuals with the emotional tools they need to rebuild self-identity and escape from group dynamics into a relationship with self. Most significantly the provision of literature to the inmate population does the following: creates opportunity for individuals to support themselves and their families through non-criminal means, provides emotional tools for individuals to rebuild identity with awareness and reflection, and encourages individuals to identify with and manage their emotion.

When inmates serve time in jail they are being punished for their choices. The hope is that the prison is not a revolving door for those who continue to commit crimes and return to put in their time only to have not changed in any significant ways. Government and citizens alike view jail as a place in which new behaviors are expected to be learned and applied in society thereafter; institutions however, are often overwhelmed managing risk with their resources and besides that are up against economic barriers that often play a bigger role in an individual's choice to return to criminal activity than ethics do. For example, a former-inmate might opt to risk dealing drugs and facing the legal consequences once again if the alternative is making minimum wage or living off of government assistance. Additionally there are great advantages that come with having the communication skills to successfully navigate situations that contribute to an individual's ability to thrive, such as; going for a job interview, securing a lease, initiating and maintaining healthy relationships, and accessing educational opportunities and resources that lead to a greater set of skills and expertise.

For many inmates who have only ever been exposed to a reality that includes criminal behavior, it is vital that they receive information and hear opinions that are outside of their circle of associates. It would be unrealistic to expect a person to be eager to make changes that have no basis in their reality. For instance, going to university is a relatively popular choice for many people and might be identified easily as an obvious positive goal, but if a person had never had a friend or family member go to university they might personally view that choice as undesirable or unrealistic. Reflecting on literature can provide inmates with a second chance to imagine and begin trying to create a new life for themselves. In order for this to be successful there needs to be a high level of self-awareness and honesty with oneself, no matter how painful. Through books, poetry, song lyrics and other mediums of artistic expression inmates like everyone else have many options available to them and can choose authors that reflect their inner voice and also provide examples of role models whom they would like to identify with. Literature encourages self-exploration and honesty and this opens up the potential for sincere reflection over the crimes that an individual has committed and but has not made peace with or moved on from.

Managing powerful emotions is a challenge for all people. For persons who have learned negative behavior patterns and/or had others enable such behaviors, who struggle with substance abuse issues, or have experienced insecure attachments in childhood, managing emotions can be a lot more challenging. Unfortunately the environment in an institution usually reinforces negative behaviors such as posturing, bullying and manipulation (not through policy but simply by means of the pecking order resulting from a congregate of individuals with criminal behaviors). By engaging with literature provided within institutions, inmates are given an escape from this world with its specific set of social rules and hierarchies. Fiction and non-fiction writing alike can provide a peephole into a created or observed reality that can more accurately reflect the find of lifestyle that inmates would choose to live moving forward after being incarcerated.