An ethnography of a rural Nepalese prison: exploring inequalities and the reach and limits of state control

Ramble, Charlotte (2023) An ethnography of a rural Nepalese prison: exploring inequalities and the reach and limits of state control. PhD thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science.

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Abstract

Life in Nepal’s prisons remains largely unexamined by scholars, despite a quadrupling of prisoners since 2006. This thesis presents an ethnography of a prison based on eighteen months of fieldwork in Nepal’s Karnali Province. It draws on participant observation in the prison and with prisoners’ families, interviews with the wider carceral network (court officials, lawyers, former prisoners) and visits to other prisons for comparative insights. It explores what a study of a prison might contribute to our understanding of the many socio-political changes Nepal has undergone in recent decades. While the prison is indeed a state institution of punishment and control, the purpose of imprisonment is also adapted to local views of justice and the role of the state in a remote region. A deep ethnography of the prison challenges the idea of a top-down system of control mirroring hierarchical structures outside. While some forms of hierarchy are indeed replicated inside the prison, new dynamics emerge as figures of authority depend on each other and compete for opportunities that arise in ever changing ways. Individuals’ approaches are informed by their character but also their social and economic backgrounds, which in turn are shaped by the country’s recent history, resulting in the co-existence of multiple orders. Material production, new encounters, prisoner transfers, and entrepreneurial endeavours can paradoxically open prisoners to opportunities and freedoms that would be unthinkable back home, where the absence of opportunities and ubiquity of tight social rules are claustrophobic and restrictive. Prisoners’ families also endure the hardships of imprisonment: ultimately, it is their caste, gender, financial situation, and social standing that determine their experience. The prison thus emerges in the thesis as a dynamic institution in continual dialogue with its wider context.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Additional Information:	© 2023 Charlotte Ramble
Library of Congress subject classification:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GN Anthropology H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology
Sets:	Departments > Anthropology
Supervisor:	Gardner, Katy and Shah, Alpa
URI:	http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/4694

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