Global History of the Prison

Catalog description

This is an introductory lecture class on the global history of incarceration. It studies the emergence of the prison as a penal institution in various forms: the medieval debtors' prison, industrial poorhouses, colonial prison and detention camps, and the modern prison industrial complex. Special focus is dedicated to the relationship between incarceration and race in a global context. Over the course of the semester, students will work on multimedia projects on a special topic related to prison history.