Solitary Confinement Research Paper

“I found solitary confinement the most forbidding aspect of prison life. There is no end and no beginning; there is only one's mind, which can begin to play tricks. Was that a dream or did it really happen? One begins to question everything.”This is a quote from Nelson Mandela who spent 27 years in prison and many of those years in solitary confinement. He only got through with intense determination which many criminals don’t have. Solitary confinement should not be allowed and must be banned. Solitary confinement, or SHU(special housing unit), causes severe mental problems as well as brain damage. Solitary confinement violates basic human rights. SHU is not just used for the “worst of the worst”, it is a common punishment for misbehavior in

In his essay, “Hell Hole” Atul Gawande informs his audience how damaging solitary confinement can be to the human body and character. To make his argument he uses examples of prisoner’s solitary confinement stories and people who have been similar situations. Gawande explains to his readers the difference phases and problems the human body goes through considering the lack of human interaction. The writer makes a compelling argument that solitary confinement is detrimental to the human’s mental state and physical well-being. His argument includes impressive diction, vivid emotional appeals, and logos appeal to guide his readers through his essay.

Solitary confinement can affect a person’s physical and mental health simply because it deprives an individual of their need to interact with others on a daily basis. Solitary confinement, which is used to restrain violent and volatile inmates from the general prison population, is done in increments ranging from several months to years. In an article retrieved from the American Psychological Association, ‘Alone, in ‘the Hole’’, the author states that, “for most of the 20th century, prisoners' stays in solitary confinement were relatively short.” This was the standing rule, in which inmates visited what is known as ‘the hole’, for several weeks to months. As time went by, the average length of stay

Solitary confinement, in my opinion, is cruel and unusual punishment. If there was not a mental-health crisis in America, and there was in fact a rehabilitation-focused prison system, solitary confinement would be greatly reduced and used much more sparingly. What is the point of driving people to madness by putting them in isolation? It would be so much cheaper for tax payers to change the system to a more effective one that actually reduces

Imagine being trapped in a damp, dark, cage as a form of punishment for something that seems completely out of your grasp. Prisons were understaffed and as barbaric as it gets the people charged with crimes were whipped. The primary cause for their creation was to keep the crooks from harming any people right? Everyone in solitary confinement is treated the same way but not everyone came for the same reason. In fact, mentally ill people were considered to be harsh maniacs which did not receive treatment for a long time. Dorothea Dix spoke to the massachusetts legislature, in 1843 she absolutely despised the “Present state of insane person's confined within this commonwealth in cages, closets, cellars, stalls, and pens!” (Document D) Her efforts

Some individuals find solace in being alone; however, imagine being alone in a concrete cell for months or even years? Isolated from the entire world into a small box seems intimidating, but this tactic is used throughout the US prison system. Solitary confinement is as a disciplinary action on the prisoners to ensure their safety and serve as punishment. This issue has raised both ethical and practical questions on its usage through US prisons because of its benefits and drawbacks.

Researchers can 't ethically create situations in which human babies are deprived of basic needs and attachments to learn about motor, physical, language, and social development. However, when circumstances create those terrible situations in the world, much can be learned by studying those involved.

What are your thoughts about the prison system? Today 's prisons are so bad that prisons in the United States hold 5 percent of the US population. Many people get sent to jail cause of the 3 law strike because a lot of minorities are caught with drugs. Plus the government is wasting 75 billion dollars on these facilities instead of using the money in a better way like making programs for the prisoners that need help with mental health or other stuff.

The criticisms of the supermax prisons are: Deprivation of medical facilities to the inmates as well as the criteria for an accused to inflict which strongly violates the inmates' personal lives. The inmates tend to suffer from mental imbalances as they are being locked away in isolation. According to John (2013), "Solitary confinement as it currently exists in modern supermax prisons is a practice with some serious flaws" (para. 1). Many prisoners that suffer from mental illness are sent to supermax prisons. Therefore, in order to control their insane conduct, they are placed in dark cells, which further deteriorate their mental health conditions. In addition, the supermax prisons do not provide with self-development programs and counseling. Also, the opportunity of getting released on parole is not granted to the inmates. The life in supermax prisons is rather grueling.

The book Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson brings awareness to the unfairness in the justice system and in our federal prisons. Incarceration of citizens suffering with mental health issues is a problem in our U.S prisons and the justice system but there are solutions to this problem like offering different programs to the mentally ill.

In Hellhole by Atul Gawande, the idea of solitary confinement as a means of punishment has been looked upon as more a form of torture. Gawande explains that the human rights of prisoners have been violated by means of solitary confinement. For the reason that it is in our nature to socialize with other people and by taking that away, it strips one of their rights as a human being. Mainly Gawande provides examples that relate to how solitary confinement is considered a form of torture. As in one experiment that involved monkeys, some monkeys were placed with fake mothers of wire and of cloth to figure out why they seemed disturbed. The experiment showed how vital it is to be physically surrounded by others than not to as it can have lasting

In my honest opinion solitary confinement in the U.S. is not justified and only does more harm than good. Not only is it a rash punishment, but it is one of the worst kinds of psychological tortures that could be inflicted upon an inmate. Human beings are undoubtedly social creatures and without the mere contact of another person the mind decays and ultimately leads a person to anger, anxiety, and hopelessness. Psychologists also claim that solitary confinement and isolation in general also cause depression or the loss of ability to have any "feelings", cognitive disturbances, such as confused thought processes and disorientation, perceptual distortions, such as hypersensitivity to noises and smells, distortions of sensations, and hallucinations affecting all five senses, as well as paranoia and psychosis which often times involve schizophrenic type symptoms, and finally, the worst of all symptoms, being self-harm such as self-mutilation, cutting and even suicide attempts.

In Atul Gawande “ HellHole” essay they talked about the experiences and effects of people who were previously in solitary confinement. Solitary confinement can be best explained as the process of removing an individual and isolating them from their environment and socialization. Atul Gawande is specifically talking about prisoners of war and incarcerated people and how their experience was and that process. The essay talked about how people are put in isolation which caused them to act out of their character. Goffman would argue that effects of solitary confinement are exactly what total institutions can do to a person's. Goffman would explain how total institutions disrupt people's routines and who they are. PRison as a total institution reduces

Solitary confinement has been a crucial component of the American prison system since the appearance of jails in the early 1800’s. One main cricsticsm of solitary conferment has been that is causes the inmates increased psychological and sociological distress .Not only that but can in turn make the inmate more violent. The use of solitary confinement is highly profound in supermax prisons . Those prisons hold all violent crime inmates. However, Solitary confinement has become an essential management tool in the American prison system. We have come to rely on solitary confinement as a way to control inmates. In addition to increase security of the prison.

Glazer, Sarah. "Prisoners and Mental Illness." CQ Researcher (13 Mar. 2015): n.pag. 241-64. Web. 15 Oct. 2015.