Prison Behavioral Subculture Analysis

An aggressive prison behavioural subculture that focuses on masculinity and the assertion of dominance determines the experiences and behaviour of men in prison. An examination of the underlying factors that lead to heightened masculinity in an all-male prison reveals an atmosphere of hostility that subsequently influences the experiences of incarcerated males. This essay will discuss the applicability of Marxist theory in understanding and evaluating the experiences of men in prison. It will ultimately argue that the Marxist theory can aid in assessing the experiences of men in prison, despite a Marxist tendency to ignore the prison subculture reality and the ability of a hypermasculine prison subculture to detract from traditional justifications
The constant environment of hostility and aggression exerts a psychological pressure on the male prisoner directly proportional to the duration of their imprisonment. Prisons “sustain, reproduce, and intensify the most negative aspects of masculinity, including physical violence, psychological intimidation, and constant bullying” (Cesaroni and Alvi 2010: 310). Threats, bullying, acts of aggression, and violence are prominent in all-male prison environments. Consequently, prison is not an environment conducive to mental or emotional stability. Furthermore, the continual victimization of weaker male prisoners reinforces the concept of hegemonic masculinity: in order to ensure protection within the prison environment, the male prisoner is required to become, or appear to become, inordinately masculine. This serves to highlight the importance of delineating the basis for the hyper-masculine prison subculture and the implications it has for the experiences of imprisoned
The foundation of masculinity is therefore the same regardless of residing in a prison or in modern society, as described by Marxist theory. Given this foundation, the specific instances of resistance that are unique to the prison experience ultimately do not detract from the underlying themes of Marxist power dynamics between the powerful state and the powerless prisoners. The societal inequality extends to the prison subculture, and contributes to hegemonic masculinity of the male prisoner and their subsequent prison