Blogpost No.1: "The Rock"

When I was growing up, my family and I loved watching the american TV series “ Prison Break”.   It's about how a younger brother who had his one and only older brother who got imprisoned and how he planned and even got himself convicted so that he can be in the same prison as his brother was.  Being the architect that drew the prison itself, he had the prison layout tattooed on his back so he can plan an escape with his brother and they can both be free to another island.   Such a stupid idea, if you ask me, but it actually tells more about what one is capable of doing for the people we love, however unlovable they maybe.   Now that I’m doing this blog about Alcatraz, it brings back memories when we would discuss over family dinner, what would happen in the TV series.  I really find this topic quite interesting, something new for me to learn about. I never knew this Island even existed until now. I think Alcatraz is more popular being the most inescapable prison in America.  There was even a movie made under its name “ Escape from Alcatraz” in 1979 starring Clint Eastwood and Don Siegel.

I found this article entitled "Alcatraz Prison" in history.com. The article covers some information about Alcatraz Island and its history, way back to how it was found by Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala, to how it  became a federal prison, and all the way to how it closed down. It also talks about how Alcatraz Island became known as "The Rock". The article also shows some glimpse about the famous inmates of Alcatraz, and the escape attempts made by the convicts.  

Alcatraz Island

According to the author, Michael Esslinger: "The federal prison on Alcatraz Island in the chilly waters of California's San Francisco Bay housed some of America's most difficult and dangerous felons during its years of operation from 1934 to 1963. "

I am quite surprise that this whole Island is just for prisoners, and so many convicts try to escape knowing that there are very limited chances for them to survive.  Prison alone must have been bad already, but they must have thought it's better risking their lives than stay in Alcatraz where visits from loved ones is possible only based on good behavior.  I'm guessing, if you're surrounded by criminals, good behavior is hard to earn.

     

Another very informative  article  is entitled "10 Things You May Not Know About Alcatraz" in history.com. The article contains ten amusing facts about the island. Some of the facts are actually very shocking. We all have an idea of how a prison looks like, but this is just a whole different story. 

According to the author,  Michael Esslinger: "While Alcatraz was certainly not Club Med, its tough-as-nails reputation was a bit of a Hollywood creation. The prison’s one-man-per-cell policy appealed to some inmates because it made them less vulnerable to attack by fellow jailbirds. Alcatraz’s first warden, James A. Johnston, knew poor food was often the cause of prison riots, so he prided himself on serving good food, and inmates could return for as many helpings as they wanted. Inmates who behaved had access to privileges including monthly movies and a library with 15,000 books and 75 popular magazine subscriptions. Overall, some prisoners considered the conditions inside Alcatraz to be more attractive than at other federal prisons, and several asked to be moved there." 

I find the article really interesting, how the prison stands out from the other federal prison. Its isolated place made me think that prisoners would be treated badly, but turns out that they we're given privileges at Alcatraz. The prison is so unique that it has a library in it for convicts, and good food were served to them to eat complete with a menu. At first, I thought going to Alcatraz Island meant that you were bad, but now I'm quite surprised to find out that some convicts actually asked to be moved there.

The Library at Alcatraz Island

The Dining Hall at Alcatraz Island

Maybe the prison authorities thought that prison like prison will just create animals out of animal like behavior of the inmates.  By subjecting them to discipline in a comfortable and more humane environment, there might be some hope for these hard core criminals.