Prison literature has been defined as writing by authors who are confined against their own will. Confinement comes in different forms including house arrests, ordinary jails or real prisons. Prisoners have used their time behind bars to produce incredible memoirs, fiction, non-fiction, essays, plays and articles to the press. A broader view is work where the author is imprisoned, writing about his experiences or whose writing is inspired by life behind bars.
Notable pioneers of this literary genre included Boethius who wrote Consolation of Philosophy under arrest as early as 524 AD. This is considers an excellent pace setting book. It inspired other people to pickup the subject and produce more books. It is under arrest that Martin Luther is said to have translated the entire New Testament from English to German. The memoirs of Napoleon Bonaparte, which became hits in the nineteenth century, were dictated to the writer when he was incarcerated.
Imprisonment has altered the writing styles of different authors besides providing them with content. Fyodor Dostoevsky is an example of this transformation. He was imprisoned for participating in the activities of an illegal movement of intellectuals. Four years after imprisonment, he changed his style and tone in writing to become more critical of nihilist and socialist view points. He was known to write about suffering and humility. This darkened his works and made it complex to understand.
The nature of prisons does not allow writers to access decent writing materials. They use waste papers and their manuscripts have to be smuggled out in secrecy at a certain point. Writers who have penned about their experiences include William Sydney Porter who used the name O Henry to produce 14 stories. Ken Saro Wiwa wrote about a naive soldier living behind bars in a book entitled Sozaboy.
One remarkable prison writing is that of an Iranian author called Mahmoud Dowlatabadi. His book was 500 pages long and entitled Missing Soluch. He did not have any pen or paper with him when he was writing the book. The entire book is said to have been written in the head while he was still behind bars. It took him 70 days to copy it on paper after he secured his release.
Some literary icons have produced incredible works while confined behind in different prisons. They include Chris Ambani, a Nigerian who documented his experience in Kalakuta Republic. The other example is Ngugi wa Thiongo who compiled his memoirs in a collection entitled Detained, A Prisoners Diary. The diary was published in 1981. Women who have contributed in this genre include Precious B from New York, Madam Roland from France, Nawal El Saadawi in Egypt and Beatrice Saubin who wrote from Malaysia.
Part of the writing that takes place in prisons is meant to pass time. Intellectuals who are imprisoned want to engage their minds. Organizations have supported prisoners to write by providing them with materials and publishing them. The aim is to offer them room for expression. Writers have used this kind of writing to fuel revolutions and keep alive debates over national issues.
Prison literature captures the thoughts, philosophy and experiences of people behind bars. Imprisonment can cause psychological issues. Writing helps the victims to come to terms with horrific scenes behind bars. The horror of imprisonment is documented in the works of prisoners.
Notable pioneers of this literary genre included Boethius who wrote Consolation of Philosophy under arrest as early as 524 AD. This is considers an excellent pace setting book. It inspired other people to pickup the subject and produce more books. It is under arrest that Martin Luther is said to have translated the entire New Testament from English to German. The memoirs of Napoleon Bonaparte, which became hits in the nineteenth century, were dictated to the writer when he was incarcerated.
Imprisonment has altered the writing styles of different authors besides providing them with content. Fyodor Dostoevsky is an example of this transformation. He was imprisoned for participating in the activities of an illegal movement of intellectuals. Four years after imprisonment, he changed his style and tone in writing to become more critical of nihilist and socialist view points. He was known to write about suffering and humility. This darkened his works and made it complex to understand.
The nature of prisons does not allow writers to access decent writing materials. They use waste papers and their manuscripts have to be smuggled out in secrecy at a certain point. Writers who have penned about their experiences include William Sydney Porter who used the name O Henry to produce 14 stories. Ken Saro Wiwa wrote about a naive soldier living behind bars in a book entitled Sozaboy.
One remarkable prison writing is that of an Iranian author called Mahmoud Dowlatabadi. His book was 500 pages long and entitled Missing Soluch. He did not have any pen or paper with him when he was writing the book. The entire book is said to have been written in the head while he was still behind bars. It took him 70 days to copy it on paper after he secured his release.
Some literary icons have produced incredible works while confined behind in different prisons. They include Chris Ambani, a Nigerian who documented his experience in Kalakuta Republic. The other example is Ngugi wa Thiongo who compiled his memoirs in a collection entitled Detained, A Prisoners Diary. The diary was published in 1981. Women who have contributed in this genre include Precious B from New York, Madam Roland from France, Nawal El Saadawi in Egypt and Beatrice Saubin who wrote from Malaysia.
Part of the writing that takes place in prisons is meant to pass time. Intellectuals who are imprisoned want to engage their minds. Organizations have supported prisoners to write by providing them with materials and publishing them. The aim is to offer them room for expression. Writers have used this kind of writing to fuel revolutions and keep alive debates over national issues.
Prison literature captures the thoughts, philosophy and experiences of people behind bars. Imprisonment can cause psychological issues. Writing helps the victims to come to terms with horrific scenes behind bars. The horror of imprisonment is documented in the works of prisoners.
About the Author:
You can visit hopeforeveryone.com for more helpful information about Growth And Development Of Prison Literature.
No comments:
Post a Comment