Why Fish?

Have you ever wondered why the book is called fish? Is it because he is trapped in prison like a fish in an aquarium or maybe is it because he is different from the rest? Finally I could answer this question, “You motherfuckers are going to get the floor wet, I must have looked puzzled. He means you are dripping wet, fresh out of the tank.” Here we can infer that “fish” is a synonym of a first-timer or new arrival in prison slang. This is shown through various scenes of the book, “I responded, smiling like a fish.”

It is shocking to read about all the sexual abuse going on in the prison. Specially the fish which are the easiest targets. I would have never imagined that in such a controlled, full of guards prison there can be such crimes going on. I mean crimes going on in a jail, how ironic.

As I read the book I could conclude that in prisons, the boundaries between gay and straight men disappear, they begin to see sex as a necessity. They don’t consider having sex with another man gay, but a simple need. The question is how can these sexual offenders not be prosecuted? How can such behavior be allowed? Why is it punished outside of a jail, yet permitted once in jail?

I was stunned by when they describe his first night, “four older inmates drugged Parsell and took turns raping him. When they were through, they flipped a coin to decide who would “own” him. Forced to remain silent about his rape by a convict code among inmates (one in which informers are murdered).” How can a human being watch another do this and not do anything about it? What are the guards there for? Isnt it their job to have everything under control.