Summary
In the modern world, over 8 million people are in prisons. However, in America, nearly two million people are in prisons, which can be observed to be a quarter of the prisoners. Technology is crucial because it monitors everything in the prisons. This fact is the reason why in prisons there are security monitors, CCTV cameras and other intelligence technology used in defense. The most dangerous criminals in prisons are housed in the super maximum security prison. Where they are continuously been monitored with a surveillance camera. In looking at history, it can be observed that in the beginning there were no prisons in the world. Most people were kept in dungeons for a short period of time awaiting for trials (desoriente0 2013). After the trials, most people were either executed, flogged or banished. The first prison began in the Roman Catholic where they had underneath dungeons that housed criminals. Early prisons started to occur in the 12th century after the rise of the development of public law and civil governments. The castles contained lower level rooms that were used for emergencies in case of wars. These rooms were turned into prison cells. Tower of London or Francis Bastille were utilized by the monarchy to lock away any political rivals. In the 15th century, there was the rise in poverty due to the expansion movement thus; many people turned to prostitutions and theft. These acts were considered to be a criminal offence, and thus, many were taken to the workhouses. This place was in the Bridewell Palace, which was donated by the King of England.
In this palace, the people taken there worked and produced many products under strict rules. It was in this place that the topic of reform began to take shape. The Devil’s Island in South America is one of the places where the Europeans took people for punishment (desoriente0 2013). They did hard labor, and the living conditions were horrendous. However, the number of prisoners increased in that some had to be placed in hulk ships where there living conditions was worst because of the high number of people in a single location as well as the severe conditions of the ships. In late 1800, these ships disappeared, and prisoners were sent to the Rikers Island where the inmates were kept in ferries. Penal reformist such as Jeremy Bentham designed the Panopticon, which ensured that an observer could be able to look into all the cells and guards. Benjamin rush another reformist believed that criminals should be removed from the society; however, the most dangerous should be reformed into becoming better people in the society. The Pennsylvania prisons and Auburn were among the biggest prisons in America. Women prisoners were kept in the basements of the male prisons. It was believed that women could be rehabilitated and, therefore, they were separated from the men. As new technology was being, introduced prisons were also changing for the better.
Compare and contrast with the Pennsylvania and Auburn prison system
The Pennsylvania is considered to be the first true prison that was built for the primary purpose of penitentiaries. It was not guided by the rules that the prison was meant for punishment. According to history, it is observed that the Western State Penitentiary was built in 1826 in Pittsburg while the Eastern State Penitentiary was built in Philadelphia in 1829 (Larry and Latham 2009). The prisoners in these places were placed in solitary confinement. This fact could be observed from the design structure of the sites. The structure of the prisons was considered to be massive in a manner that it resembles that of the gigantic stone wheels that had been laid on their sides. It is claimed that the cell from the Eastern Penitentiary has been measured as eight feet and 12 feet. There are locked doors in the two prisons with another door that leads to the yard. According to reports, it shows that the prison was able to accomplish its mandate (Larry and Latham 2009). However, there are claims that the jail caused some inmates to turn and become hardened while others became insane. Nevertheless, the prison died down because it is to be expensive to have solitary confinement.
In 1825, the Auburn prison was opened for prisoners in New York. It is stated that the prison was different from that of the Eastern Pennsylvania Prison because of the smaller cells. Therefore, the cells were mainly used for sleeping and nothing else. In Auburn, there was strict discipline in, which the guards ensured that the prisoners marched, ate and worked in silence (desoriente0 2013). The prison has the reputation of being the first to ensure that the prisoners wore a uniform of black and white stripes. Inmates who violated the rules were whipped. The prisoners worked in a group setting that was considered to be cost effective. Some contracts were made for the prisoners to work in groups; therefore, it was able to generate revenue. This work also helped the prisoners to be rehabilitated in that they got skills such as construction work that would be effective for them on the outside (Larry and Latham 2009).
In conclusion, there are differences between the Pennsylvania prisons and the Auburn prison. The Auburn prison enabled the prisoners to work together in groups. However, they were not allowed to speak to one another. In the Pennsylvania prisons, the inmates were solitary confinement and therefore, there was no contact between them. The Auburn prison enabled the prisoners to acquire skills such as construction that could benefit them in the society (Larry and Latham 2009). It can be observed that both prisons were trying to rehabilitate the prisoners to be better people in the society.
Reference
desoriente0. 2013. Prison History. July 24. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKiQi90U2AU.
Larry Mays, Latham Thomas Winfree. 2009. Essentials of Corrections. Cengage Learning Inc.
