Life for convicts at Port Arthur was miserable and the convicts were treated terribly.
Punishment was brutal and dealt daily sometimes without reason. The food the convicts were served was disgusting and made most convicts feel ill, it made them more susceptible to disease. It was common for convicts to die from illness and hard labour. Port Arthur was not the best place to live so a few brave convicts attempted to escape.
Prison life was rough for those who chose not to follow the rules, daily lashings were given out to convicts that did wrong. The punishment was decided on the degree of the offence, it could be from (10-100) floggings. The whip used was made out of knotted rope, called a cat-o-nine tails. Offenders were tied up to a pole or triangular frame, if a convict passed out from the pain or the doctor said they were at their limit the floggings stopped. Then they had a day's rest but as soon as they were back on their feet the rest were given to them. …show more content…
The use of the silent prison started in 1851, with the colony trying to move away from physical punishment. Due to the fact that it did not stop the prisoners from reoffending but only succeeded in making them tougher. During a convicts sentence in the silent prison, they had limited contact with guards and no contact with other prisoners. Convicts there had separate exercise yards, in which they spent an hour in each day. This form of punishment was designed to take away their humanity. During their sentence in the silent prison, their name, voice and ability to socialize were taken. Convicts had to wear hoods so they were unable to recognise others. In extension if a convict further broke the rules they would be sent to the ‘dark room’, where they could spend from seven hours to four weeks. The result of these punishments were often opposite to the ones desired, the psychological strain of this system drove many convicts to
Punishment was brutal and dealt daily sometimes without reason. The food the convicts were served was disgusting and made most convicts feel ill, it made them more susceptible to disease. It was common for convicts to die from illness and hard labour. Port Arthur was not the best place to live so a few brave convicts attempted to escape.
Prison life was rough for those who chose not to follow the rules, daily lashings were given out to convicts that did wrong. The punishment was decided on the degree of the offence, it could be from (10-100) floggings. The whip used was made out of knotted rope, called a cat-o-nine tails. Offenders were tied up to a pole or triangular frame, if a convict passed out from the pain or the doctor said they were at their limit the floggings stopped. Then they had a day's rest but as soon as they were back on their feet the rest were given to them. …show more content…
The use of the silent prison started in 1851, with the colony trying to move away from physical punishment. Due to the fact that it did not stop the prisoners from reoffending but only succeeded in making them tougher. During a convicts sentence in the silent prison, they had limited contact with guards and no contact with other prisoners. Convicts there had separate exercise yards, in which they spent an hour in each day. This form of punishment was designed to take away their humanity. During their sentence in the silent prison, their name, voice and ability to socialize were taken. Convicts had to wear hoods so they were unable to recognise others. In extension if a convict further broke the rules they would be sent to the ‘dark room’, where they could spend from seven hours to four weeks. The result of these punishments were often opposite to the ones desired, the psychological strain of this system drove many convicts to