The FelonBased on in-depth interviews and two years of participant observation of felons, this book traces the career paths of such criminal types as the thief, the hustler, and the junkie, as well as the non-criminal “square john.” The career of the felon, from early environment to crime to prison to parole, is explored from the point of view of the felon himself, a viewpoint seldom considered by the “straight” society in which the felon must learn to function. Since its first publication, The Felon has quickly become a classic of criminal sociology. For this new edition the author has prepared a preface assessing the changes that have occurred since the book first appeared. Engaging and readable, Irwin's description of the life of felons and his conclusions about the role of prisons in our society remain convincing and topical today. |
Contents
INTRODUCTION | 1 |
3 | 55 |
The Convict World | 61 |
LOOKING OUTSIDE | 86 |
5 | 107 |
6 | 131 |
7 | 149 |
8 | 174 |
APPENDIX | 205 |
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Common terms and phrases
activities addiction Adult Authority agency arrest become believe bonaroos California prisons cent Claude Brown commitment conception conditions of parole conventional convict social crime criminal behavior systems criminal career criminal identities deviant difficult dimensions disorganized criminal Donald Cressey dope fiend drugs Eldridge Cleaver employment evaluation ex-convict ex-felon feel felon Field notes Focal Concerns friends fucking Furthermore gleaning going gonna guys homosexual hustlers hustling important inmates instance interaction involved Jack Black jail live Lloyd Ohlin lower-class major Malcolm X marijuana mean ment nalline narcotics parole agent parole system parolee's patterns persons perspective Piri Thomas plans problems reentry relationship relatively returned to prison routine San Francisco San Quentin score sense of injustice sentence sexual social system social world society Soledad Prison square john state-raised youth style subculture tend theme thief thieves tion treatment usually violation Walter Miller William Burroughs