Neo-Marxist views on crime:
Intro:
Neo-Marxism arose as British sociologists were critical of
Functionalism, and this theory is an attempt to combine
Interactionism with critical sociology in the form of Marxism
They therefore took the view that crime was a political act
representing working-class rejection of capitalism
They saw criminals both as heroic and as victims of society
They accept many of the key ideas of Marxism: there is an unequal
distribution of power under capitalism and capitalism is a cause of
crime because of its underlying greed and individualism
Point 1: Fully Social Theory
The New Criminology, an approach associated with Taylor, Walton
and Young, was an attempt to develop and refine basic Marxist
ideas, and extend its field of enquiry from a narrowly economic
focus. They outlined the elements they claimed were required in
order to produce what they termed a “fully social theory of
deviance” - consisting of six parts
Wealth and power: The criminologist first needs to understand the
way in which wealth and power are distributed in society
Specific circumstances: He/she must consider the particular
circumstances surrounding the decision of an individual to commit
an act of deviance
The meaning of the act: It is necessary to consider the deviant act
itself, in order to discover its meaning for the person concerned
Societal reaction/social structure: The criminologist should consider
in what ways, and for what reasons, other members of society react
to the deviance. The reaction then needs to be explained in terms of
the social structure. This means that the researcher should attempt
to discover who has the power in society to make the rules, and to
explain why some deviant acts are treated much more severely than
others
The effects of labelling: It is necessary to study the effects of
deviant labels
The overall relationship: The relationship between these different
aspects of deviance should be studied, so that they fuse together
into a complete theory
Taylor, Walton and Young attempted both to offer a criticism of
existing theory and to present a new approach to the understanding
of crime based on and developing Marxist theories
Their criticisms of existing theories were that: deviants are part of
society as a whole and so should be studied with reference to social
institutions and structures, and there is a failure to understand the
nature and origin of power in capitalism
Point 2: Policing the Crisis
Stuart Hall studied street crime among young black youths in
London in the 1970s
Intro:
Neo-Marxism arose as British sociologists were critical of
Functionalism, and this theory is an attempt to combine
Interactionism with critical sociology in the form of Marxism
They therefore took the view that crime was a political act
representing working-class rejection of capitalism
They saw criminals both as heroic and as victims of society
They accept many of the key ideas of Marxism: there is an unequal
distribution of power under capitalism and capitalism is a cause of
crime because of its underlying greed and individualism
Point 1: Fully Social Theory
The New Criminology, an approach associated with Taylor, Walton
and Young, was an attempt to develop and refine basic Marxist
ideas, and extend its field of enquiry from a narrowly economic
focus. They outlined the elements they claimed were required in
order to produce what they termed a “fully social theory of
deviance” - consisting of six parts
Wealth and power: The criminologist first needs to understand the
way in which wealth and power are distributed in society
Specific circumstances: He/she must consider the particular
circumstances surrounding the decision of an individual to commit
an act of deviance
The meaning of the act: It is necessary to consider the deviant act
itself, in order to discover its meaning for the person concerned
Societal reaction/social structure: The criminologist should consider
in what ways, and for what reasons, other members of society react
to the deviance. The reaction then needs to be explained in terms of
the social structure. This means that the researcher should attempt
to discover who has the power in society to make the rules, and to
explain why some deviant acts are treated much more severely than
others
The effects of labelling: It is necessary to study the effects of
deviant labels
The overall relationship: The relationship between these different
aspects of deviance should be studied, so that they fuse together
into a complete theory
Taylor, Walton and Young attempted both to offer a criticism of
existing theory and to present a new approach to the understanding
of crime based on and developing Marxist theories
Their criticisms of existing theories were that: deviants are part of
society as a whole and so should be studied with reference to social
institutions and structures, and there is a failure to understand the
nature and origin of power in capitalism
Point 2: Policing the Crisis
Stuart Hall studied street crime among young black youths in
London in the 1970s
