C&D - Conflict theories (Marxism) Flashcards
(22 cards)
Why is crime is inevitable under capitalism?
Capitalism is criminogenic (criminogenic capitalism). it creates conditions in all social classes which promote crime.
Why do Classical Marxists believe that the working class turns to crime?
Low wages and poverty - out of necessity, stealing to survive
Capitalist advertising - stimulates desire for goods which can’t be obtained with their wages, causes crime
Frustration and Alienation - Exploitation in the workplace and a lack of control over their lives leads to non-utilitarian crimes, vandalism, violence
Is crime limited to one class, according to Marxists?
No, Crime is present in all social classes. It is not confined to the working class, and is a rational response to the capitalist system
What are the types of crimes of the powerful?
Corporate crimes - committed by corporations/companies
White-collar crimes - committed by powerful people in the course of their occupation
Sutherland - definition of white collar crime
Crimes committed by a person of high respectability and social status in the course of their occupation
What causes crimes of the powerful/elite deviance?
A belief that laws do not apply to them, the elite, that they are exempt from the rules
Give some evidence of where social elites have believed that rules no longer apply to them
Boris Johnson and “partygate”
Donald Trump and his well documented sexual deviancy
What do Chambless and Makoff demonstrate through their evidence?
The vast majority of law in the UK is property laws which aim to protect private property.
Demonstrates that laws are written in the interests of the rich as the government places more emphasis on the protection of property than the protection of people.
Snider
Very few laws actually challenge the unequal distribution of wealth, thus they perpetuate capitalism
How else can the theory that laws are written in the interests of the rich be supported?
The working class has very little say in the creation of laws themselves, the composition of parliament still greatly over represents privately educated individuals and the upper/middle classes
Pearce
Laws which appear to benefit the working class in actual fact benefit the bourgeoisie by giving a “caring face to capitalism” and preventing revolution
How may the ideological functions of laws impact the working class?
They help to maintain a false class consciousness. The government, and capitalism by extension, appears to be acting in their interest, so they do not recognise the oppression capitalism places them under
How could Marxists respond to the criticism that corporate laws show laws aren’t written in the interests of the rich?
Corporate laws are rarely enforced. Since 2007, there has been only 32 convictions for corporate manslaughter, despite the high number of deaths thought to be caused by employer negligence
What is selective enforcement? (Marxist)
Working class crime is punished much more harshly. Powerless groups are criminalised whereas corporate crimes are ignored. Crime appears (media and stats) to be largely a working class phenomenon as a result
Evidence of selective enforcement
Burglary carries a sentence of 14 years to life (if violence used)
Corporate fraud carries a 7 year sentence.
Corporate fraud in comparison steals a much larger amount of money
Criticisms of Marxist view of crime
- Class reductionism, ignores gender/ethnicity and its relations with crime
- Socialist societies with high crime (USSR)
- Capitalist countries with low crime rates (Japan, Switzerland)
- Determinism, not all poor people commit crime
- There has been an increase in convictions for corporate crime
Taylor Young and Walton - Why did they devise a new theory?
Believe Marxism is too deterministic. Criminals are not passive and crime is a deliberate choice (often a form of rebellion against capitalism). Explanations of c&d should focus on both social structure and how and why choices are made.
Taylor, Young and Walton - theory
Fully social theory of deviance, a “complete theory of deviance” which unites 6 aspects:
1. Wider origins of deviance (inequality of wealth and power in capitalism)
2. Immediate origins of deviance (context where an individual decides to commit the act)
3. The act itself - meaning for the actor
4. Immediate origins of social reactions - Reaction of those connected with deviant upon discovering deviance
5. Wider origins of social reaction
6. Impact of social reactions on future behaviour
Hall - Policing the crisis
Neo-Marxist. Newspapers (70s) carried stories about black muggings, creating a moral panic which led to the govt giving police greater powers. Focus on street crime in media led to false consciousness, attention was deflected from economic conditions and their cause (ppl and system), and proletarians were scapegoated
Moral panics and Marxism
Moral panics are a widespread feeling of fear that some person/thing/group threatens the fabric of community and society. They are pushed by the media to distract from economic problems and their cause by scapegoating minorities
Evaluation of Neo-Marxist perspectives
- Argued to be gender blind, focusing excessively on male crimes by feminists
- Romanticises working class criminals as “robin hoods”, when intra-class crime is more prevalent
- Ignores the valid fears of the working class, most victims are wc and crime rate is rising
Left Realism
Crime is a real problem, caused by living under capitalism. Believe that the majority of crime is intra-working class, but the solution to this is to reduce inequality.
