The power of literature

Hamlet has been staged all along the world, in many ways. It is a universal play. However, few times has it been brought to live with such impact and significance as in this high security prison. The play reflects many behaviors going on in prisons as well as the identities of prisoners themselves.

            It is very interesting to see how the prisoners reflect on their mistakes while they are characters on the play. They are impersonating characters who have acted in-what today would be deemed-illegal behavior. For example the actor who interprets Claudius is being confronted with killing a person, and committing a crime. I can imagine that as the scene within Claudius’ confession progressed, the inmate wasn’t playing a character he was truly repenting. Just as the person who plays the Ghost, he sees in the ghost the victim of his horrible crime. He murdered somebody, and as he read the play he felt that the ghost spoke to him. The power that the play has on the inmates is stronger than the thickest concrete wall or the most solid shackles.

            There is an interesting parallel with Hamlet and the prison’s structure. There are “killer whales”, and “guppies”. The killer whales hold the power entirely and in a prison this power is shown in cruel ways. This fear holds people back and prevents them from speaking freely. Their lives become plays, they show characters that are necessary for them to survive in prison and avoid the atrocities that happen there. That is why it was so hard for prisoners to act in plays, even if they wanted to. By acting they should weakness and might be perceived as “sissies”.

            During the podcast I felt like having a conversation with the jesters, especially when listening to “Big Hutch”. His size and power gave him a capability to speak freely, which is something very odd in places like this. They all spoke freely and naturally, they said what they felt and did in a very realistic perspective.

            This podcast reminded me of one of my favorite movies: The Shawshank Redemption. As I listened to the thoughts of these men, and their regret, their true desire for a second chance, I thought of a scene of this movie. Andy, enters the room with the intercom, he finds a record player and plays a records by “two A-talian ladies” he plays it outloud in the intercom for the entire prison two hear: “and for the briefest of moments, every last man in Shawshank felt free.