The global prison

Question 1

Describe the panoptic principle

Answer 1

Jeremy Bentham (1787): “a way of obtaining power, power of mind over mind, in a quantity hitherto without example”
Stateville prison (Illinois) was one of the most ‘pure’ examples of a Panopticon ever built:
Guard tower in the middle

Question 2

Describe the aims of imprisonment in the 19th century

Answer 2

“The real and only test of a good prison system is the diminution of offences by the terror of punishment” Sydney Smith, The Edinburgh Review, 1822
Scepticism growing:
“…worse than any torture of the body…Those who have undergone this punishment must pass into society again morally unhealthy and diseased” Charles Dickens, 1842

Question 3

Describe early 20th century humanitarian goals

Answer 3

“…turn them out of prison better men and women, morally and physically, than when they came in”, Gladstone Committee, 1895

Question 4

Are prisons all alike

Answer 4

The ‘basic prison form’ is one of the most globally diffused and durable of modern institutions
HOWEVER
Prisons differ profoundly in their implications for physical and mental health; exposure to risk, danger and fear; their propensity for violence, brutality and abuse; their orientations to work, education and opportunity

Question 5

Describe the Aims of the Scottish Prison Service

Answer 5

To keep in Custody those committed by the courts;
To maintaining good Order in each prison;
To Care for prisoners with humanity;
To encourage prisoners to take opportunities which will reduce the likelihood they re-offend and help reintegrate them back into their community

These aims are central to our new Vision for the future.