In “The Prisoner Who Wore Glasses” by Bessie Head, political prisoners in Span One intimidate their warders because they did not behave like regular prisoners who were more physical than psychological, and they do not submit to Hannetjie because he uses only brute physical force. The prisoners are political prisoners, meaning they are not convicted of a crime other than believing in what they think is right. For this reason, they are not full of guilt like other prisoners who actually commit a crime. Warders are used to prisoners who cower in fear and respond to physical force. “Span One was assertive and it was beyond the scope of white warders to handle assertive black men”(Head 127). The different, more psychological behavior of the prisoners
