“The Prison”, written by Bernard Malamud, is about a man called Tommy who has ruined his life stealing and now he wants to help a little girl, who is committing the same errors that ruined Tommy’s life. In this essay the characters Tommy, Rosa and the little girl are going to be analysed. Tony Castelli is a man with a bad past that affects him in the present. He had stolen things. In consequence, now his life seems to be a prison because he is forced to work in an awful, boring candy store and also to marry Rose, who once changed his name Tony to “Tommy”. He hopes to become a shoe maker since child. He is not entirely a bad person because, although he stole things, he wants to help a little girl who was making the same mistakes he did. He desperately wants to change his life and be free of responsibilities, of Rosa and of his candy store. “It was this sick-in-the-stomach feeling of being trapped in old mistakes”. Th...