Investing in Femininity: A Case Study of Incarcerated Women in Lithuania

Lithuanian prisons are known for their communal dormitory-style living, informal prisoner hierarchies, and dispersed authority, with little staff presence in prisoner housing areas. In such an environment, some incarcerated women have developed a strategy to maintain their individuality and autonomy while resisting the pressure to conform to institutional identities by (re)constructing femininity. This research explores the connection between the prison environment and femininity, the value of femininity and the female body within the Lithuanian women’s prison. Some women in prison embrace traditional femininity, using it as cultural capital and a kind of achievement. Others place little importance on femininity, believing that being clean and tidy is what matters most and that investing in femininity to be pointless, as the rewards are limited. The ambivalence toward femininity is reflected in the way women view institutionally acceptable feminine behavior and adherence to prison rules. Women internalize institutionally accepted narratives of femininity despite facing significant constraints in their ability to fulfill institutionally prescribed objectives.