Mensa AG 2018

Sessions Speakers Floor Plan Buzz

Shakespeare in Shackles: The Transformative Power of Literature (Room JW Grand Ballroom 2)

05 Jul 18
6:00 PM - 7:15 PM

Tracks: Speaker

Speaker(s): Laura Bates
Incarceration rates in this country are growing exponentially, but incarcerated populations are returning to society with little preparation. Many come out of prison worse than they went in. Shakespeare programs that are provided in a correctional facility offer one unorthodox approach to rehabilitation – through the use of literature. Twenty-five years ago, Bates created the world’s first Shakespeare program in Supermax — the long-term solitary confinement unit, housing the so-called “worst of the worst.” She chronicled these prison experiences in Shakespeare Saved My Life; Ten Years in Solitary with the Bard. This presentation will provide a multimedia glimpse into the world of Supermax very rarely seen. Through video clips, audience members will get to “meet” a number of prisoners who participated in Bates’ groundbreaking program. Ultimately, they will see the ways in which Shakespeare can offer a vehicle through which even the most hardened of criminals can achieve transformation and rehabilitation. Email Laurabates@indstate.edu.