Jorge Arteaga

4/2/13
ENGL 1111
Ms. Lewis
The prison and beyond
The concept of choice and freedom is a concept people have been debating and
discussing for a long time. It is a concept that defines who we are and our existence in the world.
To exist is to change the world around us based upon action of your own. Free will is the tool
that is used to leave our marks in this world. I myself pondered on the questions of choice after
playing a videogame called The Stanley Parable. A simple game where you control your
character, Stanley, to follow the paths set in front of you. The main twist is that there is a narrator
narrating the whole thing during the course of the game. It is clear that he has a certain story to
tell but the player has full control over Stanly and is allowed to go against the narrator which
leads to new areas and narrations. What the game explores is what is at the center of any video
game. The fact that even though you have complete control in a video game, in the end it is just a
glorified pick your own adventure book. I never really put a lot of thought in what I played and
to just realize this fact shows how at their core the freedom in games is nonsensical. That every
video game is just pushing you along despite the freedom you may feel. Its an effect seen a lot
in society where the center of attention is never on how there are restrictions on everything. In
Panopticism Foucault discusses in modern society how places like prisons, schools, hospitals
and factories have similar attributes when it comes to choice. These places are the backbone of
society and the center of many peoples lives. What is the societal system behind these places? It
is a system of power and discipline, where control is granted in the easiest and most effective
place possible. It is hidden behind distractions and normalcies. Like in a videogame where the
freedom to explore all rooms is still a restriction since only one room will move the game
forward. Or how the epic battles in the end are just kill everyone here and then do the same in the
next room. Foucault called this Panopticism, this system affects many and the best way to
explore it is through the incarceration system in the U.S and who it affects.
Panopticon power comes from the architecture itself. Foucault states The panoptic
mechanisms is not simply a hinge, a point of exchange between a mechanism of power and a
function; it is a way of making power relations function in a function, and of making a function
function through these power relations, (Foucault 293). It is described here as mechanisms that
establish power that are not just walls causing separation. Mechanisms that introduce a system
were in by participating causes one to be put under more control. In modern prisons this power
can come from different mechanism. A simple example would be the guards that are on watch
and around every corner or the simple isolation of a prison cell. It can be more elaborate like the
job and reward systems. In the The Farm: Angola USA the documentary explores the life of
the inmates of the largest maximum security prison in the United States. A prison like Angola
has put a strict regimen on its inmates. They all have jobs everything is restricted to certain time
like eating and sleeping. The schedule is a way they keep them in line to obey a system. This is
self-perpetuating since in the system there is a power ladder to climb. In The farm the warden
talks about how the field workers can work their way up to become tractor workers. The system
is like life but constrained the choices are either limited or nonexistent. The point is to make
goals that the warden wants the inmates to have but make sure in the end the inmates choose to
actively go for these goals and are not forced to. Like a video game the limited paths are in the
open but no matter what they are the only ones that can be chosen. Its an illusion of control,
something that is sold to the inmates and even though you can decide not to buy it why would
who. By given little control and a system to which an inmate is rewarded is a way to keep them
calm and focused. The reward is how it is pitched and the act of trying to get it is the cost. To get
it means to be complaint and in turn follow the system put in place. It is a true self-perpetuating
system of control. There can be reward at the end of this life but to a constrained life it less than
an actual one. In the documentary the follows different inmates some of who follow the system.
These inmates in the end are not rewarded and stay in the prison despite the effort they put into
the prison. It shows how false hope can be when under this system. Two of the inmates do
eventually get free but even though they are better of the imaginary walls will still follow them.
Today, according to Michelle Alexander, writer of The New Jim Crow: Mass
incarceration in the age of colorblindness there are more than 2 million prisoners in the U.S.
The inmates freedom is taken away for their crimes but when they leave they are still not
granted their full freedom back. Once you become a criminal, as Alexander puts it, the old
forms of discrimination-employment discrimination, housing discrimination, denial of the right
to vote, denial of educational opportunityand exclusion from jury serviceare suddenly legal
(Alexander 2). This discrimination and laws make an invisible prison that follows these people
around. Due to this many end up in prison again or just living their lives being treated as a
second class citizen. This is done in a manner completely legal and too many these actions are
justified. They see the label of criminal and the danger that label brings. It is what people care
about and not about social control that is going. For these criminals become an outcast with little
chance of coming back into the fold. This is a hard position to be in and results in many ending
up in prison all over again. This is in essence what Foucault was describing in Panopticism
Systems where a man can be disciplined to become what the authority wanted them to be. Here it
is, to become the criminal through walls that are not meant to lock them up but social walls that
separate them from society. While separated they are constantly observed by society due to their
status and potential danger. This makes them change for the better or the worse which most
likely ends with prison. By blocking certain rights outside of prison the incarceration system
has made a panoptic system outside the building itself. Society put in place this system to make
sure ex-offenders are under control even after they have served their time and use laws and social
stigma to do so.
Many believe that criminals should not be considered to have these rights, all they see is
the general perception and not all the cases. One of these cases is Ashanti Witherspoon was
paroled ten years after the filming of The Farm: Angola USA. Witherspoon was serving a 75
year sentence for armed robbery. From what we see of the documentary the man has reformed
himself and is dedicated to helping others in the prison and outside the prison. The fact is, this
man has earned the trust of the prison to let him, an inmate, go outside shows the dedication this
man has to his rehabilitation. It took a long time and many rejections but he got paroled and now
is outside as a free man. Though he is free he is under many restrictions due to the law and
society's attitude towards those that have been incarcerated. Ashanti has used time to build a life
inside the prison to become a better person than he was outside (The Farm: Angola, USA) He
was awarded his freedom but he can never get his life back. In the end of the documentary The
farm: Angola USA the warden of the prison talks about hope and how in the end of the day, the
hope that he is doing the right thing is what helps him through his time as warden. (The Farm:
Angola, USA) To Witherspoon it is the hope that one day he will be freed. Now after reaching
his goal he faces several problems even though it is better than being incarcerated. He needs to
continually be on his guard to make sure he does not go back to prison and fight against the
prejudice that is society. It would be easier if the law did not fully support in labeling all
criminals on equal levels. Michelle Alexander states that Through a web of laws, regulations
and informal rules, all of which are powerfully reinforced by social stigma, they are confined to
the margins of mainstream economy, (Alexander 4). To group together these folks into one
undesirable group then to brush them aside is unjust. It is done to protect those who are supposed
to be law abiding citizens but it does not make it right for people like Ashanti Witherspoon to be
treated this way by society. His story is a good example of how the effects of using these
panoptic methods can be unfair to those following the same system that traps them.
Michelle Alexander writes as recently as the mid-1970s, the well-respected
criminologists were predicting that the prison system would soon fade away. Prison did not deter
crime significantly, many experts concluded, (8). The prison system we currently have was
about to start diminishing and then The Drug War was initiated and what followed was large
spike in inmate population to todays levels. Many of these inmates are minorities and now carry
with them a record that makes them separate from normal society. Alexander argues that the
incarceration system in this country is the new Jim Crow. In todays time this seems unlikely due
to the progress made in the fight for equality. Looking at her argument and statistics that show
high percentage of minorities present in the U.Ss incarceration system its hard to argue against
it. A caste system is in essence a panoptic structure. Even though it does not have any walls it
discipline those targeted to be either inline or pushes them into criminal activity. Nicholas K.
Pert wrote an op-ed for the New York Times called Why is the N.Y.P.D. after me? in which he
describes how his current style of life was greatly affected by how he was treated due to his race.
I worried when police cars drove by; I was afraid I would be stopped and searched or that
something worse would happenEssentially, I incorporated into my daily life the sense that I
might find myself up against a wall or on the ground with an officers gun at my head. (Peart 1)
This is a good description of the effects on the people that live in a panoptic system. This mans
world was affected and he was forced under unseen observation to change his patterns and life.
The author goes on to write that he has talked too many who have shared his experience with the
police. According to him the 84 percent of those who are stopped and searched by N.Y.P.D. are
minorities. This panoptic system does not just extend to those in the incarnation system but those
that are labeled undesirable in society. Perts experience is just an example of how the
incarceration system in the U.S tends to target minorities. That this system is targeting people
that are not criminals Minorities are in their own prison imprisoned not by steel and concrete but
by society itself being constantly observed for the time they mess up to make their intangible
prison is very much real.
Pert in his article describes the multiple times he has been harassed by the police, his
story on the NY Times website has over 600 comments of sympathizers who themselves noticed
or shared Perts plight. Many are fighting to fix this issue and many are trying to spread the
word. This is apart the panoptic structure that started back in the prison. Now that people now
know that police are targeting by race and that despite efforts, it is a persisting problem. The
news creates an atmosphere of fear and acceptance. This in turn causes them to change their lives
to avoid police and make sure they are not punished in anyway. The knowledge that something
bad might happen to them is similar to the tower in the Panopticon. The inmates can see the
tower and what might be inside and this gives the observer power over the inmates. In society it
is the authorities that are the observers and the tower is built out of the examples that spread like
Perts did. This knowledge not only affects minorities but to an extent non-minorities as well.
Even though they are not the target of racial profiling does not mean they are not in the area of
effect of the panoptic powers at play. By not being the target they are ignorant and ignore the
problems of the targeting of minorities and the panoptic system at play. Since the problem has
been in society since many can remember it has just become background. The current situation is
not a shock or some big secret that was revealed, its just everyday life. We are distracted with
other new problems to deal with the ones we are used to. The system uses the excuse of safety
and keeps it all relatively mild. By doing this a different tower is created. This tower still
contains observers but the inmates just plain ignore the fact that its there. This does not mean it
has lost control but the inmates have either satisfied with the changes or are completely ignorant
that they have been made at all. This is the full extent of panoptic power. From one physical
building a wide radius of effect is produced that can reach to those far beyond the reach of the
prison. Though there are affected differently they all share the same experience of being
observed and being under the influence of panoptic power.
Stanly was just a character in a video game. He has been played by tens of thousands of players
each making their own choices for him. They play not as Stanly but as themselves, each one
experiencing the thought provoking gameplay. They react differently to game, make different
decisions but play long enough and they all have experienced the same game. Thoughts and
opinions are formed but at the center it is the game they just played about Stanley. All these
people are unknowing of the other players and yet are most likely experiencing the same
thoughts. This is the same with any media, a simple book or movie unites people in shared
experience. By sharing this experience they have become similar. What if this continues? If
everyone shares more experiences, are put through the same cycles and events, wouldnt
everyones identity converge? What if one could control the experience? They would be able to
control the identity. Panopticism is at its core is about control. Not through walls or chains but
though the concept that people under the right circumstances will not only become what you
want them to be but chose themselves to become that pre-determined identity. We see panoptic
power of the prison affect the inmates in and out, the minorities the incarceration system seems
so willing to target, and the bystanders that are present to witness the whole thing. The prisoners
who are given hope that they once will reclaim their lives back. Those ex-offenders whose rights
are taken away and never given back. The minorities that are targeted by the incarceration
system and the non-minorities that are distracted from what is affecting their lives. Even though
they were all affected differently they all shared a similar experience that stems from that one
structure. That experience isnt imprisonment but the fact that all peoples lives and identities
have willing undergone alterations. We are defined by our experiences but what if those
experiences were controlled. The full effect doesnt happen with just prisons. Panoptic structures
are sewn in across society each having their own targets and circles of influence. Places like
schools, hospitals, barracks, where you work, and where you live. Its everywhere, it
unavoidable, and thats the point. Society has evolved to incorporate panopticism, society
embraces the power the control, and how it can effectively influence so many with such little
discrepancy. We are used to this but we shouldnt be. There will always be a part of our identity
that is affected by unknown forces but this is not the case. A part of our identity is molded people
not family, not friends, not even people we ever met and never will meet. People at some point
who decide this is how they want people to act and they must decide to be that way. There not
much we can do other than acknowledge that it is there. By doing that we gain back some control
that has been lost.