Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing by Ted Conover and Inside: Life Behind Bars in America by Michael Santos

1206 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Reforming our prison systems in america

Book Comparison: Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing by Ted Conover & Inside: Life Behind Bars in America by Michael Santos Ted Conover, an investigative journalist decided to investigate the conditions within Sing Sing Prison in Ossining, New York. Taking his investigation to a new level, Conover applied to work as a corrections officer. This decision came after being repeatedly denied the opportunity to chronicle the life of a corrections officer in training by the New York State Department of Corrections. He used this experience to author his book Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing and give a first-hand account of life as a corrections officer. Conover goes on to describe the life of a corrections officer going through his first year of training and adjusting to the conditions within the prison. He further describes the interaction between corrections officer and inmate and how these interactions affected his own life. In comparison to Ted Conover and Newjack, Michael Santos in his book Inside: Life Behind Bars in America examines life in prison from an inmate’s perspective. While both Conover and Santos are examining a similar topic they have very differing points of view. Opposite of Conover, Santos describes corrections officers as menaces who use their power to manipulate and control the inmates. Santos also examines how violence was a major part of life in prison. Santos explains that violence was the only way to survive in prison and the only way to keep himself safe from other inmates. Neither Conover nor Santos paints a favorable picture of conditions within prison. In particular, Santos description of violence within prison shows a very disturbing setting for people to live. Santos describes a daily fight to remain safe and alive. ... ... middle of paper ... ...Santos spends a fair amount of time discussing the violence needed to survive. However, Santos also conveys a sense of need to reform the corrections system in America. This need for reform is actually strengthened by his overall negative perspective of incarceration displayed in his writings. Overall, both books, Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing and Inside: Life Behind Bars in America and both authors Ted Conover and Michael Santos, give unique perspectives of the life inside prison. Both for corrections officers and inmates, life within prison can be difficult. Both Conover and Santos did suggest many good changes to the correctional system that could improve the life of both inmates and corrections officers. Both authors were able to give unique perspectives due to their unique experiences and help to build upon many ideas within the study of corrections and prisons.

Show More
Related

  • Analysis of Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing

    1210 Words  | 3 Pages

    I feel that this book gives a rough, inspiring and passionate warning that the rush to imprison offenders hurts the guards as well as the guarded. Conover reminds us that when we treat prisoners like the garbage of society, we are bound to treat prison staff as garbage men -- best out of sight, their own dirt surpassed only by the dirt they handle. Conover says in one part of his book, “Eventually admitting that being in a position of power and danger brings out a side of myself I don’t like.” I feel both prisoners and officers deserve better.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Ted Conover's Memoir- Newjack

    920 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...they want to be not only respected but also being able to survive in the prison environment. In prison, there are so many inmates and not two inmates are the same. The inmates will disrespect the officers by calling them names, giving officers difficult times, but it goes the other way around too. It is disturbing image after learning that sometimes it is the officer’s fault and not just the inmates’ wrongdoings. There will be times when officers and inmates will engage in a conspiracy crime and times when the female staff is engaged in sexual actions with an inmate. Conover wrote this book to allow the audience to see the prison society from many different point-of-views and give future officers an early insight to becoming a correctional officer.

    Read More

  • Descent Into Madness By Mike Rolland: Article Analysis

    131 Words  | 1 Pages

    Mark Colvin, a professor of sociology in the Department of Justice Studies at Kent University was hired to investigate the disturbance in 1980. He analyzes the social structure of the jail and how the deterioration of the administration led to the brutally hostile conditions of the penitentiary. The dispute is especially

    Read More

  • Behind Convict's Eyes by Cerceral Prison

    1338 Words  | 3 Pages

    After reading the book I have gained a new understanding of what inmates think about in prison. Working in an institution, I have a certain cynical attitude at times with inmates and their requests. Working in a reception facility, this is a facility where inmates are brought in from the county jails to the state intake facility, we deal with a lot of requests and questions. At times, with the phone ringing off the hook from family members and inmates with their prison request forms, you get a little cynical and tired of answering the same questions over and over. As I read the book I begin to understand some of the reason for the questions. Inmate(s) now realize that the officers and administrative personnel are in control of their lives. They dictate with to get up in the morning, take showers, eat meals, go to classes, the need see people for different reason, when to exercise and when to go to bed. The lost of control over their lives is a new experience for some and they would like to be able to adjust to this new lost of freedom. Upon understanding this and in reading the book, I am not as cynical as I have been and try to be more patient in answering questions. So in a way I have changed some of my thinking and understanding more of prison life.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Stateville: The Penitentiary In Mass Society

    1180 Words  | 3 Pages

    Relations during this time with the prison and the outside world are discussed, as well as how these relations dominated life inside of a prison and developed new challenges within the prison. After Ragen left, Frank Pate become his successors. Pate faced a problem because he neither sought nor exercised the charismatic authority of Ragen. The Prison remained an imperatively coordinated paramilitary organization, which still required its warden to personify its goals and values. Jacobs goes on to discusses how what Pate did, was not the same direction or ideas that Ragen was doing or had. Jacobs’s counties this discussion with the challenges and issues that prison had during the time of 1961 through 1970. Jacobs blames that the loss of a warden who could command absolute authority, the loss of local autonomy, it heightened race problems among blacks, and the penetration of legal norms exposed severe strains in the authrotitarian system, and says pate cant control

    Read More

  • Analysis Of 'The Prisoner's Dilemma'

    1019 Words  | 3 Pages

    Chapman’s research shows evidence of 211 stabbings taking place in three years at one prison in Louisiana. Bloody riots, rape, robberies, and exhortation are just a few of the everyday occurrences that can be expected when entering a penitentiary.

    Read More

  • Ted Conover´s Newjack and on Becoming a Correctional Officer

    668 Words  | 2 Pages

    In his book Newjack he spoke of a variety of things pertaining to prison life at Sing Sing. As a new Correctional Officer coming into the ranks myself, or Newjack as he describes it I can relate to many of the issues he spoke about. Issues like when he talked about putting his game face on when he enters the prison for his shift. A Correctional officer is a person who must try to be a role model type figure, and keep his personal feelings in check. A Correctional Officer also must to be able to leave the job at the gate on the way out and not bring it home with him.

    Read More

  • How Are Correctional Officers Treated In Prison?

    1746 Words  | 4 Pages

    The way correction officers are treated in prison is dreadful. “A corrections officer was seriously burned Monday morning in an attack by an inmate at the Green Bay Correctional Institution” (Roberts, 2016). This topic interest me because most of my life my brother has described the working conditions of correction officers in prison. I remember him telling me how one officer had his finger bitten off by an inmate. Correction officers are the guards who work in prison to enforce prisoners, so that inmates do not find themselves constantly in trouble. In addition, the officers ensure inmates’ safety. Despite the fact that the officers want to secure the inmate 's safety, people are unaware of the hardships officers face every day. A great deal of the rigorous challenges guards go through are never mentioned on the news or make it to newspapers. Correction officers are rarely mentioned within society, even though they are a huge part of the law enforcement. There is a

    Read More

  • Beyond Bars

    2133 Words  | 5 Pages

    The authors begin the book by providing advice on how a convict can prepare for release from prison. Throughout the book, the authors utilize two fictional characters, Joe and Jill Convict, as examples of prisoners reentering society. These fictional characters are representative of America’s prisoners. Prison is an artificial world with a very different social system than the real world beyond bars. Convicts follow the same daily schedule and are shaped by the different society that is prison. Prisoners therefore forget many of the obl...

    Read More

  • Attica Prison Riot and Prison Reform

    1355 Words  | 3 Pages

    The 1970s in the United States was a time of incredible change, doubt, as well as reform. The many issues happening throughout the country helped to lead to the discomfort in many prisoners that eventually lead to their e...

    Read More

  • The Pennsylvania System, And The Auburn, New York System

    1082 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the early half of the 19th century, there were two new models of prisons being built in the United States. Along with the new styles of prisons being constructed, two new styles of correctional systems were developed, the Pennsylvania system, and the Auburn, New York system (Mays & Winfree, 2009). Although the designs of the actual prisons were dramatically different, both systems shared similar ideals, with regards to how inmates should spend their days. Ultimately, the Auburn system prevailed as the more popular system of corrections in the United States, with some of the system’s correctional philosophies being used well into the 20th century (Mays & Winfree, 2009). Before discussing the actual philosophies, which were used to manage the inmates in each system, we should first look at the difference in the design of the prisons used in each system.

    Read More

  • Inside The Gouverneur Correctional Facility

    994 Words  | 2 Pages

    Through two metal, cold doors, I was exposed to a whole new world. Inside the Gouverneur Correctional Facility in New York contained the lives of over 900 men who had committed felonies. Just looking down the pathway, the grass was green, and the flowers were beautifully surrounding the sidewalks. There were different brick buildings with their own walkways. You could not tell from the outside that inside each of these different buildings 60 men lived. On each side, sharing four phones, seven showers, and seven toilets. It did not end there, through one more locked metal door contained the lives of 200 more men. This life was not as beautiful and not nearly as big. Although Gouverneur Correctional Facility was a medium security prison, inside this second metal door was a high wired fence, it was a max maximum security prison. For such a clean, beautifully kept place, it contained people who did awful, heart-breaking things.

    Read More

  • Crime in Latin America

    1189 Words  | 3 Pages

    Prisons for a long time have been a gateway to try to save society, when the only thing that it’s doing is hurting the social order because it’s creating more problems that are not being treated from the beginning. Crime has become a big problem during these hard times with the poor economy, but it has especially affected Latin America because of all the problems that overcrowded prisons have brought forward. In Latin America Brazil and Mexico are the two largest countries that have been affected with having the highest percentage of crimes, inmates in prisons, and concerns with overcrowded prisons. And these increase with the high crime rates in Latin America that are rising due to drug trafficking wars in Brazil and Mexico. "The country with the largest prison is Brazil, with 194,074 prisoners followed by México, with 144, 261 prisoners" (Pinzon 1). These numbers are only rising because of the lack of poorly trained officials and the limits amount of money for programs to help them integrate back into society (Dammert and Zuniga 9). As citizens we have learned to think of prisons as the last resort to put criminals, not being aware of the consequences that it will bring in the long run for society. Prison systems fail in Latin American because they are overcrowded up to three times more of the capacity they’re built for (Pinzon 1). And this problem has caused higher crimes rates as well as the spread of infectious diseases within the prisons particularly in Brazil and Mexico because their countries with higher prevalence of injecting drug users (IDUs) and because they go unseen (Dolan 36).

    Read More

  • Models of Corrections

    1627 Words  | 4 Pages

    “The history of correctional thought and practice has been marked by enthusiasm for new approaches, disillusionment with these approaches, and then substitution of yet other tactics”(Clear 59). During the mid 1900s, many changes came about for the system of corrections in America. Once a new idea goes sour, a new one replaces it. Prisons shifted their focus from the punishment of offenders to the rehabilitation of offenders, then to the reentry into society, and back to incarceration. As times and the needs of the criminal justice system changed, new prison models were organized in hopes of lowering the crime rates in America. The three major models of prisons that were developed were the medical, model, the community model, and the crime control model.

    Read More

  • Imprisonment is Ineffective as Punishment

    1773 Words  | 4 Pages

    2nd ed. of the book. USA: Penguin Books, Ltd. [Accessed 01 January 2014]. The Prison Reform Trust.

    Read More

More about Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing by Ted Conover and Inside: Life Behind Bars in America by Michael Santos

Open Document