ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to provide a foundation for the book’s main arguments. First, we briefly review the historical practice of prisons, describing how the current practice of confinement appears to be a logical or ‘natural’ response to law violation. These confinement practices (i.e., incarceration) are believed to deter future criminalised behaviour as well as punish and rehabilitate individuals convicted of violating the law. However, by discussing the bleak realities of prison, we illuminate the failure of prisons to protect and rehabilitate incarcerated people. Next, the chapter details how examining gender improves our understanding of the relationship between prison and reentry. In the same way, gender is central to understanding men’s and women’s criminalisation and incarceration, and it also plays an essential role in their pathways out of prison. In unveiling the prison paradox, the darker sides of prison, and the gendered experiences of leaving prison, we hope to shed light on the necessity of prison abolition and add to the anti-carceral feminist movement. Finally, we discuss our unique contributions to the literature and provide an overview of the book.
