Report: Sociological Analysis of the Documentary Film '13th'

This report offers a sociological analysis of Ava DuVernay's documentary, '13th,' which examines the history of racial inequality and the criminal justice system in the United States. The analysis utilizes C.W. Mill's sociological imagination and lifestyle theory to explore how historical injustices, particularly slavery and its evolution through the 13th Amendment, have led to the over-incarceration of African Americans. The report also applies conflict and radical theories to understand the role of power dynamics and economic motives within the legal system and prison industrial complex, highlighting the perpetuation of systemic inequalities. The analysis considers the film's portrayal of the disproportionate impact of the criminal justice system on minority communities, and the film's depiction of police brutality. By examining these aspects, the report reveals how the documentary links historical patterns of oppression to contemporary issues.

Sociological Analysis of the film -13th
The world of films and entertainment plays a significant role in highlighting important
social aspects and generates public awareness. This is even true for documentaries which
attempt to highlight the depth of any social issue through a series of visuals and clippings or
through an anecdote. The film, ‘13th’ directed by Ava DuVernay is a nonfiction work, which
takes the audience through several agitating moments right from the time of slavery to the
aftermath of the 13th Amendment which attempted to abolish slavery in 1865 ‘except as a
punishment for crime’. The documentary therefore presents the argument that the amendment
gave rise to a new form of slavery through the prison systems. While officially the South
enjoyed free labor, loopholes in the law itself created motives to arrest the blacks for minor
charges and subject them to local jobs which in turn incentivized keeping prisons full.
The documentary, when supported by appropriate sociological theories, proves that
history repeats itself. Mill’s theory of sociological imagination refers to the way an individual
can perceive their own experience and assess their destiny by placing themselves within their
span of history with respect to others sharing similar circumstances (Mills, 2000). Lifestyle
theory of victimology argues that the behaviors, social networks and living conditions of an
individual can put the person at risk of victimization (Sobel and Rossi, 2013). This theory is
limited by the interrelated concept of victim precipitation where the victim itself seems to be
committing the crime. The documentary 13th basically portrays the set of such victims who
are imprisoned for minor charges and has some common economic and racial backgrounds.
They are mostly blacks with poor economic conditions. Therefore, via sociological
imagination any individual belonging to the racial minority with poor living conditions might
be under fear of being arrested for minor crimes, which a white person might not be accused
for. So, the minority community is at greater risk of victimization in terms of being subject to

a different kind of slavery in prisons, a form with similar economic motive as plantation
slavery. The movie uses text displays very effectively. One significant text is that the US has
only 5% of world’s population and 25% of the world’s prisoners. They are locked up in the
‘land of free’.
Should we talk of victimization of criminals or criminalization of the victims?
Conflict and radical theories of crime offer an appropriate explanation for the depiction of the
role of American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) supported by corporations who
made big profits from prisons. The conflict theory suggests that social orders are
consequences of power struggles and legal systems are framed usually by those in power, for
preserving their positions through social control of the less powerful. Radical theories would
rather focus on the economic class in formulation and implementation of the law (Bohm and
Vogel, 2010). In order to maintain a status quo, the legal system tries to prove such acts as
legally positive for all. However, as explained by radical theories, the legal system controlled
by powerful people would actually protect the interest of preserving their assets. The film
depicts demonization of the minority section of the society which leads to brutality of the
police force against them; the movie ends with a graphic representation of recent video
clippings depicting police shootings of blacks.
In conclusion one may say that the documentary tries to link the mundane history of
slavery with the present economic system of the prisons. It tries to show that slavery has not
actually been abolished but has taken a different form in the shape of criminalization. The
13th amendment has changed the concept and form of slavery while the purpose remains the
same. On one hand the sociological imagination theory and lifestyle theory shows how
people with common lifestyle share similar fate and how they can link their future with their
past experiences. The second two theories (conflict and radical theories) portray the interplay
of power struggles in the legal system and rather explain the interconnection between

lifestyle and destiny of a community. These latter theories show the economic motives lying
behind the actions of the legal and government authorities.

References
Bohm, R.M. and B. Vogel (2010). A Primer on Crime and Delinquency Theory, Cengage
Learning.
Mills, C.W. (2000). The Sociological Imagination, Oxford University Press.
Sobel, M.E. (2013). Lifestyle and Social Structure, Elsevier.