List Sykes’ three of five central pains of imprisonment from his study Society of Captives.

Question

What will be an ideal response?What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Sykes’ five central pains of imprisonment:
1. Deprivation of Liberty—confined to the claustrophobic world of the prison, the
isolation cuts deep: “The mere fact that the individual’s movements are restricted, however, is far less serious than the fact that imprisonment means that the inmate is cut off from family, relatives, and friends, not in the self-isolation of the hermit or the misanthrope, but in the involuntary seclusion of the outlaw…what makes this pain of imprisonment bite most deeply is the fact that the confinement of the criminal represents a deliberate, moral rejection of the criminal by the free community (p. 65)”.
2. Deprivation of Goods and Services—inmates are without most of their personal possessions; “the inmate population defines its present material impoverishment as a painful loss” (p. 68).
3. Deprivation of Heterosexual Relationships—in male prisons, the inmate is “figuratively castrated by his involuntary celibacy” (p. 70). Sykes makes clear that living with only members of your own sex can be damaging to inmates’ self-image and identity.
4. Deprivation of Autonomy—every significant movement an inmate makes is controlled by others; inmates must abide by others’ decisions and submit with enforced respect and deference; treating adult offenders in this way may make the inmates feel like helpless children.
5. Deprivation of Security—Sykes quotes an inmate: “The worst thing about prison is you have to live with other prisoners (p.77)”. Individual inmates are likely to be tested by other inmates and may have to engage in physical fights for their own safety, sanity, and possessions.