Traditional Marxist (3 Elements)

Question 1

What are the 3 elements ?

Answer 1

• crimogenic capitalism
• the state and law making
• ideological function of crime and law

Question 2

Explain crimogenic capitalism

Answer 2

• capitalism is crimogenic
• poor people often driven to crime in desperate conditions eg poverty
• alienation and lack of control lead to frustration and aggression, resulting in non-utilitarian crime such as violence and vandalism
• society based upon competition, selfishness and greed. crime is normal outcome (white collar crime)
• crime might be to obtain/consumer goods which is encouraged by capitalist advertising, resulting in utilitarian crime

Question 3

Theorist for crimogenic capitalism

Answer 3

Gorban - crime is a rational response to the capitalist system, and found in all social classes

Question 4

Explain The State and Law-making

Answer 4

• laws protect middle class//targets the w/c
• SELECTIVE ENFORCEMENT
• ruling class have power to prevent the introduction of laws that would threaten their interests
• few laws challenge unequal redistribution of wealth —> Snider

Question 5

Explain The State and Law making - Snider

Answer 5

Snider argues capitalist state is reluction to pass laws that regulate activities of businesses or threaten their profitability.

Question 6

Explain Selective enforcement- The State and Law making

Answer 6

• marxist agreed with labelling theorists although all classes commit crime, therefore selective enforcement of the law
• w/c and ethnic minorities criminalised more. police and court ignore the crimes of the powerful.

Question 7

Explain ideological functions of crime and law

Answer 7

• performs function to keep capitalism state
• law occasionally passed that appeal to benefit the w/c rather than work place health and safety law
• ## people do not question capitalism as they are under the illusion that the law cares for them - PACIFIER CONCEPT

Question 8

Explain ideological functions of crime and law Theorist

Answer 8

Pearce - law often benefits the ruling class eg keeping workers fit for work. creates class class consciousness

Question 9

What does criminogenic mean

Answer 9

Gordon argues the set up of capitalist society creates crime

Question 10

Evaluation of Trad Marx

Answer 10

• largely ignores the relationship between crime and non-class inequalities such as ethnicity and gender
• too deterministic. over predicted the amount of crime in the w/c. not all poor people commit crime
• not all capitalist societies have high crime rates; eg in Japan the homicide rate is only about a fifth of that in the US

Question 11

Left realists evaluation of Trad Marx

Answer 11

argue that marxism ignored intra-class crime eg burglary and mugging

Question 12

What is intra-class crime

Answer 12

where both criminal and victims are working class. eg robbery