Graduation Date
Summer 2025
Document Type
Project
Program
Master of Arts degree with a major in English, emphasis in Applied English Studies
Committee Chair Name
Dr. Renee Byrd
Committee Chair Affiliation
Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff
Second Committee Member Name
Dr. Janelle Adsit
Second Committee Member Affiliation
Cal Poly Humboldt Faculty or Staff
Keywords
Poetry, Rhetoric, Lineation to liberation, Expressive art, Identity reclamation, American criminal justice system, Critical prison studies, Carceral logistics, Cultural studies, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Mass incarceration, War on drugs, Abolition, Social justice, Systems of oppression
Subject Categories
English
Abstract
This project explores the transformative power of poetic rhetoric and examines how poetry as a form of expressive art serves as a means of reclamation in the aftermath of encounters with the American criminal justice system. I contend that poetry provides a space where folks can reimagine (and reclaim) their identities, asserting their agency in empowering and authentic ways. Taking a Cultural Studies and Critical Prison Studies informed approach, this project engages the concept of lineation to liberation to conduct a close reading analysis of artist (Reginald) Dwayne Betts’ poetry. Betts’ work not only provides a powerful example of how poetry can be a collective vehicle for interrogating systems of oppression it also exemplifies how poetry can serve as a utility for reclaiming agency through resisting dominant narratives imposed by the criminal justice system. Following the example of projects such as “Freedom Reads”, this work calls for an expansion of access to books in correctional facilities across the country —as books are essential tools for empowerment, rehabilitation, and reclamation behind bars.
Citation Style
MLA
Recommended Citation
Alvarez, Amber Rae, "Lineation to liberation: the transformative power of poetic rhetoric" (2025). Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects. 2327.
https://digitalcommons.humboldt.edu/etd/2327
Comments
This is an interdisciplinary project that utilizes frameworks from the fields of Cultural Studies, Critical Prison Studies, Political Science, Applied English Studies and Critical Race, Gender and Sexuality Studies.