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Without theories, science would be a futile exercise in statistics. Theories are sets of inter-related concepts and ideas that have been scientifically tested and combined to magnify, enlarge, clarify, and expand our understanding of people, their behaviors, and their societies. Goggles work because the best scientific components work together to magnify, enlarge, clarify, and expand to our view the thing we are studying. The metaphor I’ve used for many years to illustrate the usefulness of a theory is what I call "The goggles metaphor." Goggles are a set of inter-related parts that help us see things more clearly. Theory=a set of interrelated concepts used to describe, explain, and predict how society and its parts are related to each other. And they will provide you with a basic understanding of how to see the larger social picture in your own personal life. They also guide practitioners in their intervention strategies. Yet, there are insufficient facilities available to house such a large number of prisoners in solitary confinement.Sociological theories are the core and underlying strength of the discipline. The reason why I regard this as a clandestine society exclusive to the inmates is that if the prison guards were aware of the true nature of this intersociety, they would have no choice but to isolate the strongest inmates in confinement. However, this control remains veiled, known only to those men and women who endure the torment of this purgatory-like existence. The prison guards, situated outside this society, act as controllers who possess the power to manipulate the surface behavior of the inmates. Within the prison society, there exists a power disparity and class conflict that has persisted throughout history. The prison society underscores the social inequality prevalent within a certain social group as the powerful systematically exploit and demean the actions of the weaker individuals.
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In my perspective, the conflict theory aligns best with prison dynamics because the elite, who are the strongest, openly exploit all aspects of the societal structure to maintain their power. In prison, there exists a significant imbalance in social status between the powerful and the vulnerable, with the latter being subjected to bullying and coerced into providing sexual favors for the former.
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The conflict theory is the most suitable theory to apply to prison society due to the dominance of the bourgeoisie as the strongest group and the proletariat as the weakest. The predominant value within the prison context revolves around degrading newly admitted inmates and engaging in violent confrontations or even murder to settle grievances. Moreover, the assumption made by functionalists that society members generally agree on desirable and valuable aspects does not hold true in prison. However, in prison, the individual becomes the primary determinant, as the strong enforce dominance while the weak grapple to survive or succumb to the unbearable pain that prison life entails. The perspective of structural functionalism posits that society is paramount, with the individual holding minimal significance. In prison, rape is a norm, brute force determines the strongest rule as a custom, snitches are traditionally killed, and the hole serves as an institutional means of isolating inmates to prevent rape. This paper focuses on prison society, which is considered dysfunctional. The Structural Functionalist Perspective of Prison Functionalism analyzes society based on the functionality of its elements, such as norms, customs, traditions, and institutions.