The Lives of Young Men Inside and Outside the Prison: Rods Analysis of Gender Considerations - Research Paper Example

 Earle Rod’s “Boys’ zone stories: Perspectives from a young men’s prison” explores how young men identify with their gender during their time in an English Young Offender Institution. There are dissimilar ways that young men talk about their lives when inside and outside prison. The role of gender in any given situation is a key consideration in various organizations such as the prison context, for instance. Gender awareness not only comes to perspective in prison, but also leads to the rises in cases of homosexuality within these prisons. Notably, the overall role of prison in the facilitation of gender awareness, gender roles, the variance in their gender awareness perspective when in prison and before incarceration are the key issues that Rod visits. Gender perspectives are not only influenced by the sexuality of an individual, but also a key consideration of gender roles as well. In most contexts, men feel more masculine when they are providers, but in a prison context, where all individuals are male, these characters change significantly. Rod (2011) assesses how the variance in gender roles directly impacts on their gender perspectives as well. The article analyses the alteration of roles both in prison and outside the prison context. This study has been inspired by a few other authors who present their perspectives on the topic, as well as building on other research issues on the same topic that he had previously conducted. The article also assesses the variance in gender roles within the prison in comparison to their ethnography. Different people from variant ethnic background have had a diverse perspective pertaining to their gender roles while within the prisons. One of the notable aspects of ethnic backgrounds that serves as a consideration of the gender within the prison, is the level of violence. For instance, in most prisons, where African men are seen as more violent and irrational, the level of gender changes is relatively high. In this context, the main area that has been assessed is the issue of rape and sexual assault within any given prison. Masculinity in prison depends with an individual’s roles within the prison (Karp, 2010, p63). Karp (2010) assesses the roles of prison work and the influence it has on an individual’s reputation within the prison as well as his overall wellbeing. The research incorporates the fact that prison works not only make the individual more masculine but also increases the chances of an individual’s survival since most people within prison works have many friends within the prison. In such a context, the capacity of one to provide protection, for instance, gives them a masculine gender, while the weaker individuals within the prison are forced to conform to situations, turning into "wives" at prison to ensure that they are protected. As such, muscular strength of violence capabilities forms a great foundation for great foundation for assuming masculine roles within the organization. Rod (2011) covers the issue of gender roles from the assumption of various gender roles within the prison, which create masculinity for one’s ability to provide, be it financially, drugs or protection. The level of connectedness of an individual in prison is also a key gender roles that determines the sexuality of the prisoner within the prison. However, sexuality is not common amongst all individuals in the prison, since some of the people remain heterosexual throughout their prison lives. For instance, people with the capacity to influence and make friends with others do not necessarily need to be sexually violated or forced to conform to new sexuality preferences despite their weakness (Perkins, Kelly & Lasiter, 2014 p.4). The determination of gender roles in prison comes down to the ability to provide, just as was the case in the previous generation. Perkins, Kelly and Lasiter (2014) assess the lives both in the prison and outside the prison, in the perspective of a young black person. This research covers a little bit of the prison life, assessing if there are any skills that these individuals picked up while in prison and the possibility of the being used outside there. The research however, also focuses on how life in prison affected the overall wellbeing of the former prisoners. Prisoners with a history of providing for their families outside the prison, similarly assume more masculine roles within the prison. In such a context, people who had families and were vicious in providing for these families exhibit more masculine characteristics as compared to those whose life outside the prison did not encompass providing for their families. As such, newly incarcerated individuals in prison, who do not exhibit masculine characteristics, are easily bullied into feminine sexual roles, and with time, they conform to their new gender roles. Rod (2011) further argues that the level of masculinity outside prison directly impacts on the levels of masculinity within the prison. People who were less masculine outside the prison ended up assuming less masculine roles within the prison. Occupation outside the prison also has a direct impact on the gender within the prison. Walshe (2012) assesses the case of a subject who was a clerk formally, comparing it with his life in the prison. In this case, Walshe shows how a man from the formal employment is sexually molested within the prison, forcing him to conform to being a gay prisoner after countless sexual assaults within the prison in his first days, just as a means to survive in the general population. Walshe (2012) primarily focuses on the aspect of rape and its effect on gender and sexual identity of its victims. The highest population of people in prison was mostly for street criminals, who had no formal employment or who worked previously in the informal sector. As such, people from white collar jobs are victimized marginally within the prison. Rod’s comparison of the life outside the prison and is the direct impact within the prison analyses occupation as a key factor in determining the gender orientation of prisoners. In his account, Rod assesses how masculine jobs provided a platform for gender preservation within the prison. In this analysis, the author explores how the crimes people made and their intensity within the prison directly impact their overall gender influences. The genders of individuals in prison not only vary in accordance to their sexuality or the sexual preference, but also largely include the masculinity and the femininity of the roles they played within the prison. The occupations within the prison also play a crucial role in determining the gender orientation of prisoners. Prisoners who receive prison work or get recruited into the prison working structures tend to play crucial masculine roles within the prison, thus securing their gender preservation. Gender change within prison in most cases is not voluntary, but in some contexts, personal preference is the key motivator of gender chance and increased gender awareness. According to Walshe (2012), gender change in prisons can be largely attributed by a need to survive or a need for protection within the prison walls. The sexuality of people outside and within the prison environment largely vary. Rod’s assessment of the gender roles and lives of people outside the prison compared to their newly acquired genders within the prison shows the variance in gender behaviour. Gender roles within the prison are not based mainly on emotion connection, but rather a physical attraction nurtured in time (Hurst, 1997, 121). Hurst (1997) focuses on the bias against gay newcomers in prison, despite the rise in homosexuality cases within the prisons. Gay people in prison around the United Kingdom, despite the assumption that prisons are a form of paradise for gay people, are largely marginalized. Unlike American prison, gay people in the United Kingdom are hated, discriminated against and oppressed as evidenced by a research undertaken by James (2012). Age is another crucial factor that determines the gender and sexuality of people in prison as presented by Rod (2011). Youngsters suffer more sexual molestation or sexual reproof as compared to the older people. Age is subjective of two main areas of assessment. Besides age in the real life, another key consideration is the length of time one has served in the given prison. People with longer serving terms are more subjective to gender change as compared to people with relatively shorter terms. Additionally, people who have lived in jails for much longer suffer fewer cases of sexual assault as compared to new prisoners (Kacaneck et al, 2007, p1210). Newly incarcerated youngsters were more prone to gender change as compared to people who had served longer sentences. Experience within the prison also gave people capacity to master the system and control their gender roles. For instance, people who have lived in prisons for much longer are well connected, have learnt the art to provide both for themselves and their colleagues, whereas people who have just joined the system lack the skill sets to have protection or the necessary survival skills resulting in them changing their gender roles and altering their sexuality in order to fit in and survive the prison life. This has been highlighted in the case presented by Walshe (2012). In this consideration, there are other incidences and cases of how people change their sexuality in the beginning stages of their sentences, only to later conform to their preferred sexuality after having the experience to survive within the prisons. Gender issues within prisons have also led some people to only adopt a different sexuality when in prison, and take on diverse gender roles while in the system only to alter them after leaving the prisons. In contrary, some people believed that they were straight but eventually discover that their "sexual identity" is different in prison, the main reason why most transgender individuals have been imprisoned one time or another. Additionally, research also indicates that people in some of the instances have turned homosexual, after prison, not due to their personal choice, but because of the common indulgence in the behaviour while in prison (Kunzel, 2002, p257). Kuznel (2002) assesses the issue of sexuality within the prison, unmasking the truth about sex amongst male and female prisoners in their respective prisons, shedding some light on sexually transmitted disease, the use of condoms and other suchlike areas. As such understanding sexual identity and gender roles in prison is a complex behavioural analysis that has interested most psychologists. Rod’s analysis of gender considerations inside prison and after prison, assesses the changes in sexual identity and the diverse gender roles amongst people who have been incarcerated. The analysis uses several paradigms to analyse this issue, and all the information that has been presented in the case shows a form of similarity in the overall perception of the issue of heterosexuality, homosexuality and bisexuality in prisons, condensing it all into a number of factors that might have contributed to gender change amongst most of the people. The article is not only highly educational but also one of the most interesting pieces on prison behaviour. Despite this fact, the article has analysed almost every aspect from one prison only, which thus deems the research as largely biased. Regardless, the content and insights shared in this paper show the effect of prison on gender roles. List of References Aitken, SC 2012, 'Young men's violence and spaces of addiction: opening up the locker room', Social & Cultural Geography, 13, 2, pp. 127-143 Earle, R., 2011, “Boys’ zone stories: Perspectives from a young men’s prison”, Criminology and Criminal Justice April 2011 vol. 11 no. 2 129-143. Hurst, T. Fall 1997, Gender differences in mediation of severe occupational stress among correctional officers. American Journal of Criminal Justice, Volume 22, Issue 1, pp 121-137 James, E. September 25, 2012, Homophobia is still rife in UK prisons. Retrieved on April 22, 2014 from http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/sep/25/homophobia-rife-uk-prisons Kacanek, D, Eldridge, G, Nealey-Moore, J, MacGowan, R, Binson, D, Flanigan, T, Fitzgerald, C, & Sosman, J 2007, 'Young Incarcerated Men's Perceptions of and Experiences With HIV Testing', American Journal Of Public Health, 97, 7, pp. 1209-1215 Karp, DR 2010, 'Unlocking Men, Unmasking Masculinities: Doing Men's Work in Prison', Journal of Men's Studies, 18, 1, pp. 63-83 Kunzel, Regina G. 2002, Situating Sex: Prison Sexual Culture in the Mid-Twentieth-Century United States. GLQ: A Journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies Vol. 8, No. 3 253-270. Oleinik, A 2013, 'The Social Life of Illegal Drug Users in Prison: A Comparative Perspective', European Journal of Crime, Criminal Law & Criminal Justice, 21, 2, pp. 185-206 Perkins, D, Kelly, P, & Lasiter, S 2014, '“Our depression is different”: Experiences and perceptions of depression in young Black men with a history of incarceration', Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, Science Direct, EBSCOhost, viewed 22 April 2014. Walshe, S, March 7, 2012. The grim truth of being gay in prison. Retrieved on April 22, 2014 from http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/cifamerica/2012/mar/07/grim-truth-gay-in-prison Read More