PSCI 225 Cultural Politics of Prison Towns
- Fall 2024
91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ sits in one of the worlds most explicitly carceral landscapes, with more than a dozen state prisons within a 90 min drive. This co-taught course is a collaborative ethnographic research project designed to examine how the presence of prisons in towns around 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ reflects and shapes the political, economic, and cultural lives of those who live in the region. Students will be introduced to methods and practices of ethnography and conduct firsthand research on the cultural politics of prison towns. Through assigned reading, students will learn about the history, sociology, and cultural logics of 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ and the wider region, and of mass incarceration. What does a prison mean for a person living near one? How does the presence of prisons shape peoples notions of justice, citizenship, and punishment? How do these nearby but largely invisible institutions shape the ways that we live in 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳? Recommended prior courses: Being Human: Cultural Anthropology or Incarceration Nation.
- Spring 2023
91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ sits in one of the worlds most explicitly carceral landscapes, with more than a dozen state prisons within a 90 min drive. This co-taught course is a collaborative ethnographic research project designed to examine how the presence of prisons in towns around 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ reflects and shapes the political, economic, and cultural lives of those who live in the region. Students will be introduced to methods and practices of ethnography and conduct firsthand research on the cultural politics of prison towns. Through assigned reading, students will learn about the history, sociology, and cultural logics of 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ and the wider region, and of mass incarceration. What does a prison mean for a person living near one? How does the presence of prisons shape peoples notions of justice, citizenship, and punishment? How do these nearby but largely invisible institutions shape the ways that we live in 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳? Recommended prior courses: Being Human: Cultural Anthropology or Incarceration Nation.
- Fall 2021
91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ sits in one of the worlds most explicitly carceral landscapes, with more than a dozen state prisons within a 90 min drive. This co-taught course is a collaborative ethnographic research project designed to examine how the presence of prisons in towns around 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ reflects and shapes the political, economic, and cultural lives of those who live in the region. Students will be introduced to methods and practices of ethnography and conduct firsthand research on the cultural politics of prison towns. Through assigned reading, students will learn about the history, sociology, and cultural logics of 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ and the wider region, and of mass incarceration. What does a prison mean for a person living near one? How does the presence of prisons shape peoples notions of justice, citizenship, and punishment? How do these nearby but largely invisible institutions shape the ways that we live in 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳? Recommended prior courses: Being Human: Cultural Anthropology or Incarceration Nation.
- Fall 2020
91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ sits in one of the worlds most explicitly carceral landscapes, with more than a dozen state prisons within a 90 min drive. This co-taught course is a collaborative ethnographic research project designed to examine how the presence of prisons in towns around 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ reflects and shapes the political, economic, and cultural lives of those who live in the region. Students will be introduced to methods and practices of ethnography and conduct firsthand research on the cultural politics of prison towns. Through assigned reading, students will learn about the history, sociology, and cultural logics of 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ and the wider region, and of mass incarceration. What does a prison mean for a person living near one? How does the presence of prisons shape peoples notions of justice, citizenship, and punishment? How do these nearby but largely invisible institutions shape the ways that we live in 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳? Recommended prior courses: Being Human: Cultural Anthropology or Incarceration Nation.
- Fall 2019Joshua Dubler, Kristin DoughtyFall 2019 — M 14:00 - 16:40
91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ sits in one of the worlds most explicitly carceral landscapes, with more than a dozen state prisons within a 90 min drive. This co-taught course is a collaborative ethnographic research project designed to examine how the presence of prisons in towns around 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ reflects and shapes the political, economic, and cultural lives of those who live in the region. Students will be introduced to methods and practices of ethnography and conduct firsthand research on the cultural politics of prison towns. Through assigned reading, students will learn about the history, sociology, and cultural logics of 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ and the wider region, and of mass incarceration. What does a prison mean for a person living near one? How does the presence of prisons shape peoples notions of justice, citizenship, and punishment? How do these nearby but largely invisible institutions shape the ways that we live in 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳? Recommended prior courses: Being Human: Cultural Anthropology or Incarceration Nation.