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Rotten Evidence: On Writing a Prison Memoir
Abstract
This paper examines the ethics and challenges of writing a prison memoir. As an Egyptian writer who was imprisoned in 2016 for publishing my novel Using Life, I later wrote a book about my experience in jail titled Rotten Evidence: Reading and Writing in Prison (McSweeney's, 2023). Drawing on this experience, this paper explores the complexities of writing about incarceration and the ethical considerations that arise when sharing personal stories of imprisonment. In particular, this paper examines the challenges of writing within the constraints of human rights narratives that often require ex-prisoners to write in a testimonial format that can be limiting. This paper considers how writers navigate these challenges and maintain the integrity of their work while also contributing to the broader discourse on prison reform.
Discipline
History
Law
Linguistics
Literature
Political Science
Geographic Area
Egypt
Sub Area
None