American Prisons: Their Past, Present and Future

Synopsis

Imprisonment Has Become Big Business In The United States. Using A History Of Ideas Approach, This Book Examines The Cultural Underpinnings Of Prisons In The United States And Explores How Shared Ideas About Imprisonment Evolve Into A Complex, Loosely Connected Nationwide System Of Prisons That Keeps Enough Persons To Populate A Small Nation Behind Bars, Razor Wire And Electrified Fences. Tracing Both The History Of The Prison And The Very Idea Of Imprisonment In The United States, This Book Provides Students With A Critical Overview Of American Prisons And Considers Their Past, Their Present And Directions For The Future. Introduction -- A Brief History Of Imprisonment In America (1600-1900) -- The Twentieth Century Prison Building Binge -- Federal Prisons In The Twentieth And Twenty-first Centuries -- Profiting From Punishment: Corporations And American Prisons -- The Final Solution -- Capital Punishment -- Less Visible Prison Minorities -- Women, Children And The Elderly -- Prison By-products -- Violence And Disease -- The Future Of Prisons In The United States. David Musick And Kristine Gunsaulus-musick. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.