While in jail the former hatchet man to the President noticed the despair and lack of purpose that his prison mates displayed. Even while in jail Charles identified the reason for sadness. “250 men lived here, but watching them through the window was like watching a silent movie in slow motion. Droop shouldered, sticklike figures of men were drifting aimlessly and slowly in the open area: others were propped up against the buildings and a few sitting in small clusters on benches. The figures just seem to be floating ever so slowly.
Chapter 4 is entitled "The Cruel Hand," stemming from Frederick Douglass's quote in 1853 where he describes "a heavy and cruel hand" being laid upon the black man. In this chapter, Alexander describes how relevant this quote still is today. This chapter got me thinking about when a prisoner has served his/her time behind bars and they are finally "free," they are anything but "free. " They are almost better off behind bars because at least there, they have a place to sleep and food to eat. A prisoner is released out into the real world after serving time behind bars and they are immediately expected to provide for themselves.
However, we are more than the labels used against us, because there are so much more to a person’s character. We should seek out the goodness in someone’s heart rather than the blemishes. Bryan Stevenson describes that private prisons “… has corrupted incentives
They say three aspects of a thriving society are where we’re from, who we know, and how we think. On the flip side of that coin, these very same aspects can ironically be our undoing. That delicate balance can be the difference between a life in prison and a life dedicated to others. Yes, the sobering realities of life can be harsh but it can also shape and mold us into the people that we’re destined to be. In The Other Wes Moore, The lives of two young men are examined through three distinct lenses.
The poem ‘Morning Praise of Nightmares One’ which is written by Lauire, Ann Guerrero depicts a strong notion about abuse and elements of despair when children at tender age are dealt with extreme abusive behavior. The overall theme of the poem is around the narration of a young girl who is living a life of pain in a house where she is inflicted with torture, pains and bruises. Despite of her miserable condition nobody is helping her. She is facing each morning with screams of nightmares which are never ending and no one is there to comfort her.
Moore exhibits how, “… few lives hinge on any single moment or decision or circumstance,” and that there was not defining difference between him and the incarcerated man who shares his name (182). The main difference between him and the other Wes Moore is the collection of family, culture, and experience that Moore had in his upbringing. His mother and grandparents, by providing structure and the opportunity to go to private and military school, “… made it clear that they cared if [he] succeeded, and eventually so did [he]” (115). His mother and grandparents, through their constant attempts to keep Moore looking beyond his seemingly hopeless future, created expectations for him that he would ultimately want for himself. On the other hand, the other Wes Moore never seemed to have any meaningful expectations that he could seek.
Alexander addresses mass incarceration through compelling and historical analysis of African Americans. This correlates to the concept of social justice and the One World Initiative theme- Global Perspective on happiness because in the era of colorblindness, it is no longer socially acceptable to use race as a justification for discrimination, segregation, and social hatred. Yet, as Michelle Alexander reveals, today it is perfectly legal to discriminate against convicted criminals in nearly all the ways that it was once legal to discriminate against African Americans during the Jim Crow era. This does not symbolize the global perspective on happiness in any way shape or form. Happiness is contentment, satisfaction, cheerfulness, joy, well-being.
Patient sufferers! Behold your dearest rights crushed to the earth! See your sons murdered, and your wives, mothers and sisters doomed to prostitution. In the name of the Merciful God, and by all that life is worth, let it no longer be a debatable question whether it is better to choose Liberty or death.” We can see the frustration over the abuse of the children, wives, sisters, and even mothers of these men.
“I could hear my heart beating. I could hear everyone’s heart. I could hear the human noise
The inner moral compulsion to obey is what drives most social organizations. Sykes (2007) described several structural defects that occurred in the New Jersey State prison. Sykes (2007) argues that power in prison is not based on authority therefore prison officials have to find other means to get prisoners to abide by the rules and regulations. The ability to use force to maintain order on a large scale in the prison is an illusion. According to Sykes (2007), Certain privileges such mailing and visiting, personal possessions, time-off for good behavior etc. are given to the inmate all at once upon his or her arrival to the prison.
Prison reform has been an ongoing topic in the history of America, and has gone through many changes in America's past. Mixed feelings have been persevered on the status of implementing these prison reform programs, with little getting done, and whether it is the right thing to do to help those who have committed a crime. Many criminal justice experts have viewed imprisonment as a way to improve oneself and maintain that people in prison come out changed for the better (encyclopedia.com, 2007). In the colonial days, American prisons were utilized to brutally punish individuals, creating a gruesome experience for the prisoners in an attempt to make them rectify their behavior and fear a return to prison (encyclopedia.com, 2007). This practice may have worked 200 years ago, but as the world has grown more complex, time has proven that fear alone does not prevent recidivism.
“I mean other’s expectations that take you on as your own”(126). They both believe that we as people-kids- never really had our own expectations of ourselves without the help of someone else putting it there constantly but Wes-author- believe this causes a person to lose control, however Wes-prisoner- felt you can’t lose
Anyabwile states that “if incarceration pillages a person or family so completely, it’s difficult not to feel hopeless”. Yet by accurately describing the way mass incarceration robs a family, Coates is robbing these families of hope. The hope that they desperately gripe at daily and blacks have for the past hundreds of years. Without hope, the blacks lose motive
The Wanderer; A Psychoanalytical Analysis Often times when analyzing literature from past time periods, we are able to use modern theories to gain a better understanding of the underlying feelings and emotions within the text. In the poem The Wanderer, the author uses the bargaining, depressive, and acceptance stages of grief within the Wanderer’s mental thoughts and processes by describing his feelings as an exiled man when using a modern day analysis. Today, we know these five stages of grief from the two theorists Elisabeth Kübler-Ross and David Kessler. Although there are five stages (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance), the wanderer is only experiencing three of those five stages which can be felt in any order and at any time. The wanderer talks of all of his past relationships and how he feels upset that he can no longer see or share life experiences with these individuals.
After working with these men for months, you begin to look past the societal mask they are forced to wear due to their past mistakes, and begin to see them as real genuine people. [Thesis and Preview] Life after prison affects all realms of a community. Through the process of leaving prison, to jobs, and to living conditions, I hope we have a better understanding on life after incarceration from this speech.
