Marxist Explanations of Crime and Deviance

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Who developed a Marxist theory of crime?
Bonger and Chambliss
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What are the five key elements of Marxist stance on crime?
Law benefits ruling class, Ruling class impose values, Law enforcement favours powerful, Crime rational response to inequal capitalist society, Selective enforcement of law takes away from unfair nature of society
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How does the law benefit the ruling class?
Criminal justice system exists to maintain power of Bourgeoisie, agents of social control make laws to control and punish w/c
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What tool of the ruling class passes laws which help them and how?
The State - Supports ruling class interests, Maintains ruling class power, Coerce and control the subject class
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What is an aspect of false-class conciousness that deals with crime?
Commitement to laws by members of society as they are made to help ruing class
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Who notes something about capitalism and crime?
Mannheim - A large number of crimes dealing with property in capitalist societies
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What did Chambliss say about Mannheim?
Such laws not needed in feudal society, land main source of wealth
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What female Marxist said something about corporations?
Snider - State doesn't want to pass laws against pollution, worker health, etc as would lose investement oppurtunities
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How does the ruling class impose their values?
Through agencies (Education, media, religion), hegemony, false class concsciousness
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How does law enforcement favour the powerful?
Crimes of the powerful ignored such as corporate and occupational crime, tend to be less visible than street crime
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How is crime a rational response to unequal capitalist society?
All values promote wealth, individualism, ownership of property, competition
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What did Chambliss note about the classes and crime?
All classes commit crime, w/c can only commit street crime (Mugging, prositution), while m/c class commit fraud etc
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What does Gordon say about crime being rational?
Particularly in American society, dog eat dog and with no welfare system wealth is paramount
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How does the selective enforcement of law takes away from unfair nature of society?
The occasional prosecution of ruling class crime makes the system appear fair and that ruling class crime is small
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How does Gordon argue the law enforcement in USA supports the capitalist society?
Selecting members to be punished not institutions of capitalism, Imprisonment of selected members netralises opposition, By keeping criminals hidden in prisons the failures of society are hidden
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How do Feminists criticise Marxism?
They ignore importance of patriachary, too much emphaise on class conflict
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How are Marxists criticised?
They assume communism would eradicate crime, not true in Soviet Union
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How does Jones criticise Marxism?
Capitalism doesn't always have high crime rates, Switzerland doesn't
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What is a critism of Marxism in general?
Assumes ruling class have all power, not always true
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How do Left Realists criticise Marxism?
Ignores consequences of w/c crime to other w/c people, offers no way of dealing with this crime
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What is a positive evaluation point of Marxism?
It's true that corporate crime is rarely policed or punished
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What is the adapted version of Marxism?
Neo-Marxism - They try to apply Marxist ideas to current society,they focus on other factors than class (eg Media in Cohen's Folk devils study)
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Which Neo-Marxists see working class deviant subcultures?
The Birmingham Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS) - As a form of ideological resistance to the dominant adult value system shaped by middle class and capitalist values
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What subculture did Phil Cohen study?
1970's Skinheads, argues it's symbolic reaction to decline of w/c communities, through dress
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Who says subcultures as a form of resisitence as a 'illlusion'?
Brake - Each w/c generation express this differently (clothes, slang, etc) but are all trapped by exploitation
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Who says that cultures of resistance have emerged within ethnic minorities?
Scraton - Ethnic minorities in worse socio-economic position than white majority, leads to cultures of resistance where crime is organised resistance, dates back to anti-colonial struggles, young members doing this as political not criminal act
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What do Left Realists think of the Neo-Marxist view of crime and deviance?
Left idealism - Most crime doesnt help poor people, usually by and against them, most subcultures don't mean to be resisting capitalism
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What do Taylor, Walton and Paul say in their book 'The New Criminology'?
Crime can only be understood by looking at: Wider social origins of the deviant act, The immediate origins of the act, Meaning given to the act by others, Historical context of this reaction, Impact of the social reaction to it and future of criminal
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Which Traditional Marxist criticised 'The New Criminology'?
Hirst - Strayed too far from Marxist tradition
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What did Rock say about the New Criminology and how did Young reply?
Rock said it gave far too romantic a view of criminals, Young replied that is why he created left realism
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Which Feminists criticised 'The New Criminology'?
Pat and Carlen - Doesn't explore patriachary, continues to ignore women from criminology
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What is the issue with the New Criminology methodologically?
Difficult to apply as too complex, No sociologist used it yet, Hall tried, more model than guide to research
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

What are the five key elements of Marxist stance on crime?

Back

Law benefits ruling class, Ruling class impose values, Law enforcement favours powerful, Crime rational response to inequal capitalist society, Selective enforcement of law takes away from unfair nature of society

Card 3

Front

How does the law benefit the ruling class?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What tool of the ruling class passes laws which help them and how?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What is an aspect of false-class conciousness that deals with crime?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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