Public space is all around us in various social, economic and political forms and can be seen as an essential part of everyday life. Research on public space by mid-twentieth century urbanists like Jane Jacobs and William Whyte ‘understood public space physically as the space between buildings in a city, and socially as both a space of community formation and of ‘strangers’ (tourism visitors, outcasts) (Mitchell and Staeheli, 2009). More recently, public space has been a topic of opportunity and discussion, creating a public ‘sphere’ where public opinion is formulated. According to Clive Barnett (2014), ‘the concept of the public sphere has become a central reference point…to evaluate rapid changes in the institutional configurations, economic …show more content…
In the book, Geographies of Exclusion (1995), David Sibley, drew upon the idea of Object Relations Theory – ‘a theory that emphasizes interpersonal relations, primarily in the family and especially between mother and child’ (Sonoma State University). He argued that identities in the Western society are differentiated between those that are the same and those that are different, or ‘Other’. One way of continuing this distinction ‘is to ensure a suitable physical distance is also maintained between ‘Self’ and ‘Other’ (Jon May, 2014)
The Object Relations Theory, although established at an interpersonal level, can also be applied at a broader scale, for example, the nature and design of prisons (Martin and Mitchelson, 2008). May (2014) explains that prisons ‘in one sense designed to keep people in, they are also understood as a way of keeping prisoners at a safe distance from ‘decent society’.’ The use of prisons is a way of dividing the ‘good’ from the ‘bad’ as they are built further away from densely populated areas (e.g. Dartmoor, UK). Spatial boundaries reflect space as an expression of ‘Outsiders in Urban Society, David Sibley (1981)’ and emerge into a purpose of public space concerning separation of the good from
Over the past couple of decades the UK’s prison population has exploded, causing an overcrowding crisis. Statistics show that intake has doubled since 1993 and the UK now has the largest population of prison inmates in Western Europe at 85,108. The Certified Normal Accommodation (CAN) for UK prisons is 75,440, so ‘the prison estate is currently holding just under 10,000 more people than it was designed to’ as reported by the Prison Reform Trust. Their research shows that ‘the 30 most overcrowded prisons in England and Wales are twice as likely to be rated as failing by the prison service’. Overcrowding is having a negative impact on the effectiveness and safety of the prisons which has been amplified by ‘cuts of more than 20% to the prison budget’ and ‘reformers argue that the best way to improve the system is to reduce both the number of people sent to prison and the amount of time they spend there’. According to The Howard League for Penal Reform, imposing community sentences on offenders rather than prison sentences, immediately diverts them away from ‘rivers of crime’, where ‘prisons are sinking under a tide of violence and rampant drug abuse’ and they argue that by simply putting people in prison they can be swept ‘deeper and
Not only do prisons separate the criminals from the innocent, to be effective, according to Lappin and Greene, they must also separate the criminals from the worse criminals. Convicts in prison for non-violent offenses are not supposed to be housed with violent offenders. “Unfortunately, our prisons are becoming more and more overcrowded maki...
The Justice Gap (2012) [online] “Privatising prisons a step too far”, Available at: http://thejusticegap.com/News/privatising-prisons-a-step-too-far/ [last accessed on 10th November]
“Loneliness is a destroyer of humanity” and “The agony of solitary confinement is like being buried alive”, are only some of the thoughts of inmates placed in solitary confinement. In his article “Hellhole”, Gawande elaborates the disastrous consequences that arose from solitary confinement. Gawande begins his article by stating, “Human beings are social creatures” (1), and to exist in society as a functioning human being, social interaction is fundamental. He further states, “Our identities are socially created” (8), therefore, it is through the relationships that
When the average person thinks of a prison, what is often the thought that comes to mind? Perhaps an environment of reform is envisioned, or maybe a place for punishment. Maybe someone sees them as modern leper colonies, where countries send their undesirables. It could be that prisons are all of these things, or they could be none. With these ambiguities in the general definition of a prison it is easy to say that the everyday person could have no real critical perspective on what they truly are. That being said, if the average person were presented with Angela Davis’s perspective, and the perspective of many scholars, they may be shocked to learn what prisons truly are. This perspective presents prisons as a profitable industrial complex very similar to the military industrial complex. Like the military industrial complex, in the “prison industrial complex,” investors make large amounts of money off the backs of imprisoned inmates. It is interesting to note how similar these two systems are, with closer analysis; it seems to me as though one may have developed from the other. On another note, the prison industrial complex also appears to have a correlation with the globalization of labor; which makes it possible to assume that one contributed to the development of the other here as well. However, where the prison industrial complex’s roots lie is not as big an issue as the simple question of the morality of the practice. A person can know the history of the issue all they want but the important matter is addressing it.
Prison can be a daunting and psychological challenge for anyone. Experiences can have lifelong effects and can often traumatise those incarcerated. However the experience minority ethnic prisoners face can be deemed diverse. They can become victims of discrimination, racism violence and harassment all on the basis of their race, skin colour, or nationality. Scott and Codd (2010, P. 70) note that ‘prisoners from certain believed culturally or biologically determined ‘racial groups’ are understood as being genetically, intellectually or socially inferior beings, thus contributing to their own poverty of life experiences and criminal identity'. Scott and Codd (2010) state that ‘the prison place racism is a key dimension of the expression of power, shaping prejudicial decisions, exclusionary practices and the physical manifestation of violence, bullying and intimidation’. Scott and Codd (2010, P.70) put forward that ‘this penal terror goes even further for some, such as foreign national prisoners, as it can exacerbate the structured pains of the prison itself. Jewkes and Johnston (2006, P.107) found that ‘prisoners from ethnic minority backgrounds have faced a long struggle in getting the Home Office and Prison Service to recognise their diverse cultural, religious and dietary needs’. Jewkes and Johnston (2006) put forward that the UK prison population has risen by 15,000 since New Labour came to power in 1997, and has doubled since Margaret Thatcher took office in 1979. Inmates from ethnic minority backgrounds account for a large percentage of this figure. For example the white population increased by 36 per cent, Black population grew by 196 per cent, south Asian populations grew by 120 per cent and Chinese/other Asian by 223 ...
White, Rob and Perrone, Santina. 2010. “Incarceration and Prisonisation.” In Crime, Criminality & Criminal Justice, edited by Bill Gillespie, 475-509. Victoria: Oxford University Press.
Overcrowding is one of the predominate reasons that Western prisons are viewed as inhumane. Chapman’s article has factual information showing that some prisons have as many as three times the amount of prisoners as allowed by maximum space standards. Prison cells are packed with four to five prisoners in a limited six-foot-by-six-foot space, which then, leads to unsanitary conditions. Prisons with overcrowding are exposed to outbreaks of infectious diseases such as, tuberculosis and hepatitis.
You are in a dark, clammy room. Eight steps to your right, you meet a wall; ten steps forward, another. Your only possessions for the next few days, weeks, or maybe even years, are a cot, a toilet and the clothes on your back; you’re granted no human contact, and a taste of freedom only one hour a day—in a cage. This is solitary confinement. “The degree of a civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons,” speculates Russian novelist, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, whose literary works analyzed the human psychology. Prisons are typically thought of as a facility in which criminals are stripped of their freedoms and punished for their crimes; it is also used to instill fear onto those who dare fathom breaking the law. America has the highest
Faugeron, Claude. "The Changing Functions of Imprisonment." Prisons 2000: An International Perspective on the Current State and Fututre of Imprisonment. Ed. Roger Matthews and PeterFrancis. MacMillian Press LTD.: London 1996.
In understanding Relational Cultural Theory (RCT), we will first examine its fundamental assumptions and then critically assess those assumptions. Next, we will evaluate RCT’s assumptions to determine its relevance to the core values of social work. Finally, we will determine the ways RCT can best guide social work practice.
Prisons have dated back to the twentieth century when the United States had almost two million people confined in prisons or jails. Prisons have been a form of government punishment that has shaped our nation to what it is today. The first jail was established in Philadelphia, in 1970. It was called the Walnut Street Jail and was recorded as the first use of imprisonment through solitary confinement. The basic principles of the new system were to reform those in prison, and to segregate those according to age, sex, and type of offenses charged against them (Schoenherr). The second prison was called Sing-Sing a...
Again, this section will give a working definition of the “urban question’. To fully compare the political economy and ecological perspectives a description of the “urban question” allows the reader to better understand the divergent schools of thought. For Social Science scholars, from a variety of disciplines, the “urban question” asks how space and the urban or city are related (The City Reader, 2009). The perspective that guides the ecological and the social spatial-dialect schools of thought asks the “urban question” in separate distinct terminology. Respected scholars from the ecological mode of thinking, like Burgess, Wirth and others view society and space from the rationale that geographical scope determines society (The City Reader, 2009). The “urban question” that results from the ecological paradigm sees the relationship between the city (space) as influencing the behaviors of individuals or society in the city. On the other hand...
psychopathology increases when the ego cannot function satisfactorily enough to control impulses or pleasures and does not have a defense when conflict arises. These may manifest as suppression, denial, or develop into negative character traits (Butcher, Mineka, & Hooley, 2010). Object Relations Theory was developed by theorists that include Melanie Klein, Margaret Mahler, W.R.D. Fairburn, and D.W, Winnicott during the 1930’s-1940’s. Klein was important because she put a bigger emphasis on the Oedipal stages Freud discussed. She felt that critical challenges during this phase caused later issues and made imprints on the psychological development of the individual.
The origin of the word prison comes from the Latin word to seize. It is fair to say that the traditionally use of prison correspond well with the origin of the word; as traditionally prison was a place for holding people whilst they were awaiting trail. Now, centuries on and prisons today is used as a very popular, and severe form of punishment offered to those that have been convicted. With the exception however, of the death penalty and corporal punishment that still takes place in some countries. Being that Prison is a very popular form of punishment used in today's society to tackle crime and punish offenders, this essay will then be examining whether prison works, by drawing on relevant sociological factors. Furthermore, it will be looking at whether punishment could be re-imagined, and if so, what would it entail?