The ‘In-Egression: Sociological Notes for the Construction of a Character of the Penal System

Abstract

This paper aims to describe the character I call ‘egressante’ (‘in-egression’), referring to convicts who are serving the so-called ‘criminal benefits’ (such as parole) in liberty. For this purpose, I analyze an example from research on their ‘moral careers’ based on a sample of 23 interviews with in-egressions from Rio de Janeiro’s penitentiary system. The interviews focused on these actors’ biographies especially on crime life, imprisonment, and re-entry to broader society. My hypothesis is that the in-egression has modes of evaluation and judgment transformed by the experience of incarceration, which leads to an identity reassessment during the process of egression of the system, based on what I’ve been designating as ‘hangover’.