''Dead Man Walking'' (1993) is a work of non-fiction by Sister Helen Prejean, a Roman Catholic nun and one of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Medaille based in New Orleans. Arising from her work as a spiritual adviser to two convicted murderers on

death row Death row, also known as condemned row, is a place in a prison that houses inmates awaiting execution after being convicted of a capital crime and sentenced to death. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting executio ...

, the book is set largely at the Louisiana State Penitentiary (Angola) in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. It examines moral issues related to the men's acknowledgement of their crimes and to the state's use of the death penalty.

Background

Prejean has become a leading advocate for the abolition of capital punishment in the United States. Her campaign was initiated following her correspondence and visits that she maintained with two convicted murderers. She began this ministry in 1982. The first man was Elmo Patrick Sonnier, who was sentenced to death for the murder of a teenage couple. She visited Sonnier in prison and agreed to be his spiritual adviser in the months leading up to his execution in the electric chair. The second was Robert Lee Willie for whom she also served as spiritual adviser. Prejean gained insight into the minds of the convicted murderers, the process involved in executions, and the effects on the prison guards and other personnel. She became convinced that the state's use of the death penalty was morally wrong and began speaking out against

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender b ...

. At the same time, she founded ''Survive'', an organization devoted to providing counseling to the families of victims of violence.

Name

The title of the book comes from a once-traditional phrase in American prisons to designate men who had been sentenced to death. They were held on what was known as death row and were deprived of most social contact and barred from work or participation in prison programs. Before the 1960s, when guards would lead a condemned man down the prison hallway, they would call out, "Dead man walking! Dead man walking here!" The origin of the phrase is unknown, although it may come from th
title of an 1890 poem
by

Thomas Hardy Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...

about a person who turns into a corpse even when apparently alive. It may have been to warn other staff or prisoners to let them know that they should be on their guard since a

prisoner has nothing to lose and could be violent. It may also have been a kind of

honorific An honorific is a title that conveys esteem, courtesy, or respect for position or rank when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term "honorific" is used in a more specific sense to refer to an Honorary title (academic), h ...

declamation, to let other prisoners know that they should move out of the way, death row prisoners being seen as an

elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (, from , to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful or wealthy people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. Defined by the ...

within the prison system. Alternatively, the call may have been a stigma attached to the condemned man, to remind others within earshot not to touch him to avoid catching his bad luck. In any case, its symbolism is clear: the condemned prisoner, in the eyes of the law, was dead already.

Adaptations

Film

In 1995, a film based on the book was made, starring Susan Sarandon and

Sean Penn Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He is known for his intense leading man roles in film. List of awards and nominations received by Sean Penn, His accolades include two Academy Awards, a Golden Gl ...

. The film was a critical and commercial success, and Sarandon won the

Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 1st Academy Awards to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a lead ...

for her performance.

Opera

The book was adapted as an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

of the same name, composed by Jake Heggie with a libretto by playwright

Terrence McNally Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," M ...

. It premiered at the San Francisco Opera in October 2000. The international premiere of the opera was in August 2003, in Adelaide. It has been produced in several other cities, including by the Union Avenue Opera in St. Louis, Missouri. In November 2019, Lyric Opera of Chicago presented their premiere of the opera. It premiered at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

in September 2023.

Stage version of the book/film

Hoping to expand the influence of the book and her message, Sister Helen collaborated with director

Tim Robbins Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Andy Dufresne in the film '' The Shawshank Redemption ''(1994), and Jacob Singer in '' Jacob's Ladder'' (1990), as well as winning an Academy ...

to adapt the book into a stage play. According to the Catholic Mobilizing Network and the play's website, "Since the launch of the project in the fall of 2003, more than 250 high schools and colleges across the country have produced the play, conducted academic courses on the death penalty, and brought the issue to life on their campuses through art, music, and public education and action events."

References

* Prejean, Helen (1993). ''Dead Man Walking''. Random House. (paperback)

External links

{{Portal, United States, Books
'Dead Man Walking' School Theatre ProjectSister Helen Prejean's websiteSister Helen's Facebook page"Sister Helen Prejean: The Real Woman Behind 'Dead Man Walking'"
''American Catholic'', April 1996

1993 non-fiction books American memoirs Works about capital punishment Memoirs adapted into films Random House books Works about American prisons Louisiana State Penitentiary Books about Louisiana Books about imprisonment