Loss of Freedom

A tiny, dark cell with a small bed and end table, lit only by a barred window and a weak candle.

I never saw a man who looked
With such a wistful eye
Upon that little tent of blue
Which prisoners call the sky,
And at every drifting cloud that went
With sails of silver by.

I walked, with other souls in pain,
Within another ring,
And was wondering if the man had done
A great or little thing,
When a voice behind me whispered low,
“That fellow’s got to swing.”

Dear Christ! the very prison walls
Suddenly seemed to reel,
And the sky above my head became
Like a casque of scorching steel;
And, though I was a soul in pain,
My pain I could not feel.

Oscar Wilde (1898)
Ballad of Reading Gaol – I (extract)

Loss of freedom - a haunting fear for many. Whether it comes in the form of literal imprisonment, a feeling of being trapped, or even loss of agency, it goes against our nature to be caged. In some cases, unfortunately, it is deemed a necessary evil.

Bodmin Jail, established in the late 1700s as Cornwall's primary prison, aimed to prioritise the health and well-being of prisoners by providing clean water and individual cells. However, conditions, though considered humane at the time, were harsh by modern standards, with inmates subjected to hard labour. The law was strictly upheld; even minor offences carried the death penalty. Over its 150-year operation, 55 people were hanged at Bodmin Jail, their crimes ranging from murder to stealing wheat.

Some say the spirits of those hanged still wander the jail, which now operates as a tourist attraction and historic site. When we visit the cells, we are surrounded by echoes of lives lost and futures erased. We freely walk through the corridors where hundreds of desperate souls once cried for a glimpse of the sky, and we are reminded of the importance and fragility of our freedom.

Fig. 2 - The Red Cell. A cell consisting of a small bed and a covered-up window, with an ominous red light shining through the bars.

Fig. 3 - The View. A prison window, through which only more prison bars are visible.

Fig. 4 - The Ram. An omen of death, a ram's skull, sits atop a crate in front of a photo of an 11-year-old boy who was once an inmate in the jail.

Poetry:

Ballad of Reading Gaol – I (extract) - Oscar Wilde (1898)

Locations:

Fig. 1-4 - Bodmin Jail Attraction, Bodmin.

References:

Bodmin Jail History and Information.