Prisons In The 19th Century

In the 19th century two different and historical prison systems came into existence. Those prisons came to be known as Eastern State Penitentiary located in Pennsylvania and New York’s Auburn Prison. Both had different ways of working and philosophy of how to treat the prisoner. I find that an advantage for the way Auburn prison worked its institute was that they would have prisoners do hard work. It was the institute’s belief that the prisoner who learned to do hard labor in prison will be compelled to do them same once out of prison. Prisoners work consisted from growing their own foods, make their own attire, etc. In the case of the Pen State the advantage where in order to prevent any violent or hostile environments in the institute, prisoners

where not allowed to interact with each other. Each prisoner was isolated when it came to eating their meals or exercising. The disadvantage for both Auburn prison and Pennsylvania’s Pen State was that prisoner where not getting the social skills they needed once out of prison. Having prisoners in isolation like that would only hurt them mentally and emotionally. The difference between Auburn and Pennsylvania prisons was that Auburn was designed for prisoners to work together as team, but no interaction as far as talking was permitted as for Pennsylvania’s goal having rehabilitant programs through isolation, silence, and prayer. The major pressures of life during prison came out from these two prison systems was that in Auburn prisoners were not allowed to have any contact or visitation from their family members. Because prisoner would work practically turned the prisoners had work into revenue. In Pennsylvania prison life was each prisoner faced loneness from been kept away from communication with other prisoners. In Pennsylvania types of punishment by way of solitary confinement was to keep prisoners from having knowledge of institute’s design, and silence in their lives will bring some sort of enlightenment In auburn prisoners would be chained together and be made to move their feet moved the same and keep their heads down to show uniformity and graceless, this method of prison punishment was seen as been part of rehabilitating them back into society.