The Enlightenment and early traditions - Classicism and positivism

Question 1

Classicism

Answer 1

Eighteenth century, aimed to introduce a much more rational and fair system for organising punishments and control. Its concern was to establish social order.

Question 2

Cesare Beccaria

Answer 2

Seen as the founder of classicism. Wanted to see the reform of the irrationality and unfairness of the judicial system (including the abolition of torture and punishment).

Question 3

Social contract theory

Answer 3

Classicism. How individuals come together to make a society work.

Question 4

What does it mean that humans have “free will”

Answer 4

classicism. Human actions are not simply determined by inside or outside forces, but can be seen as matters of free decisions.

Question 5

Punishment as a deterrent

Answer 5

Classicism. Human beings will choose not to commit the crime if the punishment fits the crime.

Question 6

Utilitarianism

Answer 6

Classicism. Laws useful to the greatest number.

Question 7

Secularism

Answer 7

Classicism. Avoids the ideas of God’s law, instead law was made by human beings, and rational.

Question 8

Punishment in classicism

Answer 8

Must be proportional to the crime, meaning that it corresponds to the severity of the harm done by the crime and it resembles the crime.

Question 9

Essay on crimes and punishments

Answer 9

Cesare Baccaria in 1764; advocated for the humane treatment of criminals.

Question 10

The panopticon

Answer 10

Jeremy Bentham. A circular prison with cells arranged around a central well, from which prisoners could at all times be observed.

Question 11

Problems with the classical model

Answer 11

Overly rational vision of human nature, committing crime is a free choice and it assumes that societies work in fair and just ways.

Question 12

Cesare Lombroso

Answer 12

Seen as the founder of modern criminology. believed that criminals were earlier species of the evolutionary scale. Invented the idea of a criminal body.

Question 13

The Italian school

Answer 13

Raffaele Garolafo, Enrico Ferri and cesare Lombroso.

Question 14

Enrico Ferri

Answer 14

Believed the the causes of crime fell into three main heads: the anthropological, physical and social.

Question 15

The five basic criminals by Ferri

Answer 15

criminal lunatics, the born incorrigibles, habitual criminals, occasional criminals and emotional criminals.

Question 16

Quételet

Answer 16

Developed the theory of social mechanics, believed that statistical research could discover the underlying regularities for both normal and abnormal behavior.

Question 17

Émile Durkheim

Answer 17

Studied suicide rates systematically to show that they had a very definite pattern. Eventually linked the results to differences in people’s social integration.

Question 18

What does positivism think of the criminal

Answer 18

the criminal is a specific type of person, he/she differs from others and he/she is driven into crime through factors outside of their control.

Question 19

Problems with the positivist model

Answer 19

Assumes that people are driven into crime by forces largely out of their control, meaning people are not responsible for their actions, it exaggerates the differences between criminals and non criminals and it neglects the workings of the penal system.