Blog #4: OITNB

At the beginning of the first episode, we can observe how Chapman and the people around her are positioned in a good house, which we can only assume is in a good neighborhood, and they all have very good clothing.  It is also pointed out that they are eating an entire pig, almost as a celebratory good-bye “party,” which only highlights the irony of the rich not taking seriously the situation in which Chapman has gotten herself involved, Her sister even starts to remind her of the expectations for their social class and even states “you may not come back with a uni-brow,” as if Chapman was going to go to a place where she could maintain her beauty standards.  It is also noted that Chapman’s mom even tells friends that her daughter is doing “volunteer work in Africa,” as to not taint their “perfect” image.

The way in which people dress and carry themselves seems to be a placement of status in the world today; the words you use or the clothes you wear can place you, automatically, in a category, as was the case for Piper.  When Piper and her Fiancé where trying to enter the prison so that Piper could turn herself in, the guard immediately made it clear that there was “no visiting today” and was very surprise when he was told that she was turning herself in, as if there was a way of telling who is a criminal solely by the way they look.

When Chapman is talking to Sam Healey and she reveals that she was charged with “Criminal Conspiracy,” she assumes that just because she had a previously clean record, she felt that she did not belong there since she keeps making it clear that her actions were only “Once. Ten Years ago,” and even after she admits to the crime she again states, “I did it.  That one time,” deciding that because she only committed a crime once and apparently since it was a long time ago she should be forgiven for her actions, as opposed to everybody that is also in jail, who are assumed to be repeat offenders.

Not only is the social status established, but also the racial status and expectations, since Chapman is guided to go sit with the “nice white lady,” and even reminded by some of the white staff/inmates that, in that jail, “we look out for our own.”  In another occasion, one of the Hispanic inmates is targeted since she did not meet the expectation of another jail mate of speaking Spanish, even though she was expected due to the color of her skin.

From the time in which Chapman turns herself in, we can see how everybody starts to give her lessons on how to fit-in in this new “society” and guide her on the new norms; wear sandals in the shower, don’t eat the pudding, sleep on top of the bed, “don’t go to Danita,” “check the elastic on all the pants,” “you gotta bus your tray,” etc.  An article about “Assessing the Organizational culture in a Jail Setting,” states that it is better to “understand the culture” inside the jail, since the inmates that do not follow certain “key attributes” are more likely to more likely to suffer “negative influences.”

One big example of the oppression in the specific environment of this prison is the authoritative figure of Red, the lady that runs the kitchen, and the moment that she was insulted by Chapman’s comment about the food being “disgusting,” she took it upon herself to terrorize Chapman as a way of given her a lesson and showing her authority and power.

Stohr, Mary K., et al. "Assessing the organizational culture in a jail setting."The Prison Journal (2012): 0032885512448614.

Jenji Kohan. Orange is the new Black: I wasn’t ready.  2013