Crime is a Social Construct. - 1751 Words

CRIME IS A SOCIAL CONSTRUCT Crime is the product of the social structure; it is embedded in the very fibres of society. In this essay, I aim to explore different theories as to why crime exists within society and how we as a society therefore construct it. Crime is a social construct; it is always in society and is on the increase. It is inevitable. Where does it come from? It comes from legislation, from the making of laws. Functionalists see crime deviance in society as a function, in that it serves to remind us, through public condemnation of those who have broken the rules, of our shared values and norms. Furthermore, they suggest that crime is a result of structural tensions and a lack of moral regulations within society. If the†¦show more content†¦The laws against higher status crime, the White Collar crime, are therefore relatively lenient and rarely enforced, but the laws against crime which is committed by those with a lower status, are harsher and more often enforced because they are so visible and detected much more easily. The activities of White Collar crime occur on a daily basis, but there is no public outcry or moral panics about it and therefore no legislation made, whereas, street crime attracts massive law enforcement. As Jeffrey Reiman (2001) so aptly stated, The rich get richer and the poor get prison. Interactionism was quite popular from 1960s to 1970s. Max Weber and George Herbert Mead favour the Interactionist approach and suggest that crime is a social process, that crime is an interaction between the victim, the police/officials and the offender. Crime is shaped by the nature of this interaction and this selective labelling, stigmatisation, negative labelling of those without power and more vulnerable. This approach focuses upon the interaction between deviance and those who define it as such, hence the Labelling Theory. Howard F Becker, the founder of this theory, argues that society creates deviance by making rules. Rules that when broken, constitute deviance, and by labelling those particular people as deviants, they are also labelling them as outsiders. Therefore, it is not the act of the person, but rather a consequence of applying the rules byShow MoreRelatedCrime Is a Social Construct1370 Words   |  6 PagesCrime is a social construct Discuss. This composition will look at crime and its different criminological interpretations. Crime is an umbrella word which covers a diverse range of issues and is dependant upon the theoretical stand point of the writer. Although the wordings of the explanations differ, the implications are consistent (Newburn, 2007. Doherty, 2005). Mclaughlin et al (2006) seems the most relevant for the purpose. They separate crime into three key constituent parts. These are harmRead MoreCrime Is A Social Construction1083 Words   |  5 Pagesthis essay I will be discussing Christie’s (2004) viewpoint that crime is a social construction, drawing viewpoints from Henry (2001), Walklate (2007), and Cohen (1972). Firstly, it is important to address the construction of the dictionary definition of crime and then to delve further into the changing nature of crime itself, also reflecting on crime within certain contexts. This will happen by looking at the current definition of crime and cross-examining it with Christie’s theoretical perspectiveRead MoreWhat Does It Mean?1700 Words   |  7 Pagessingle biological species(homo sapiens) within a larger grouping or genus(homo) (page .173), which clearly means that race is not biological contrast but social construct also meaning that humans are socially different but biologically the same. The social construct has influenced the world in classifying people based on superiority and inferiority. Social teaches us about human society and its interpersonal relationships as members of society. An individual s race has always been a limitingRead MoreCampus Crime : The Dark Side Of The Ivory Tower1456 Words   |  6 PagesOver the last two and half decades, campus crime as a social issue has come to the forefront of public attention and is regularly reported in both print and electronic media. Specific and general legislation has also been passed in order to prevent campus crime from occurring as well as to educate those who are either in danger of victimization or have the ability to prevent victimization and assure that justice is done. However, campus crime is not a new issue in regard to its occurrence, only inRead MoreRace And Ethnicity1131 Words   |  5 Pagesidea of social construction. Furthermore, I would like to specially provide responses to discussion questions number one and two as posed in the conclusion of chapter one. Discussion question number one asks to â€Å"Explain the origin of race and its implications for race and crime.† Discussion question number two asks â€Å"Do you believe there are distinct races?† I will also provide perspective on issues surrounding the term â€Å"minorities†. Today, social scientists refer to race as a â€Å"social construct† andRead MoreSocial Learning Theory Of Crime1278 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction as a general concept, social learning theory has been applied to the many different fields of social science to explain why certain individuals develop motivation to commit (or abstain from) crime and develop the skills to commit crime through the people they associate with. Social Learning Theory (SLT) is one of the most frequently looked at theories in the criminology field. This theory was introduced by Ronald L. Akers as a reformulation of Edwin H. Sutherland s (1947) differentialRead MoreLabelling Theory in Explaining Crime and Deviance - A2 Sociology729 Words   |  3 Pagesusefulness of labelling theory in explaining crime and deviance. (21 marks) Labelling theorists are concerned with how and why certain people and actions come to be labelled as criminal or deviant, and what effects this has on those who are labelled as such. As stated in Item A, labelling theory is focused with how individuals construct society based on their interactions with each other. Becker emphasises the significance of crime being a social construct; an action only becomes criminal or deviantRead MoreHate Crime990 Words   |  4 PagesHate Crime The simplest definition of what a hate crime is, is a crime committed against a victim due to his or her perceived role in a social group. Social groups can be defined by many factors such as sexual orientation, race, disability, religion, age, gender and many other factors. Within this essay I aim to evaluate the causes of hate crime and also to assess the impact of crime on victims and the strategies used for responding to hate crime. The types of hate crime I am going to be focusingRead MoreCrime Is Defined And Recorded, And Will1415 Words   |  6 Pagesthose in power, such as the government and police. If someone breaks these rules, they are labelled deviant. This essay will look at the implications of this view in regards to how crime is defined and recorded, and will also assess the effect this has on official criminal statistics. Becker (1963: p. 9) states that, â€Å"‘social groups create deviance by making the rules whose infraction constitutes deviance’, and by applying those rules to particular people and labelling them as outsiders†. If the labelRead MoreEssay on Theories of Crime and Criminal Activity1488 Words   |  6 PagesTheories of Crime and Criminal Activity Every theory of crime has at least 2-3 meta-theoretical levels above it. The fundamental issues are usually addressed at the approach level, and are often called the assumptions, or starting points, of a theory, although the term assumptions more strictly refers to the background or domain boundaries one can draw generalizations about. Above the approach level is the Perspective level, the largest unit of agreement within a scientific community, and

Heart of Darkness Parallels Free Essays

Heart of Darkness V Apocalypse Now The fictional novel Heart of Darkness by author Joseph Conrad is a book written in first person. The setting of the novel is in the Congo Jungle, with most of the book occurring on the Congo River. The novel describes Marlow’s story and his many strange encounters while traveling up the Congo River. We will write a custom essay sample on Heart of Darkness Parallels or any similar topic only for you Order Now Marlow is on a mission to retrieve the very successful ivory merchant Kurtz, who has been separated from his company. Heart of Darkness deals with themes of colonialism, racism, and savagery. While also exploring the potential darkness that can be seen in the heart of man. Apocalypse Now is a movie directed by Francis Coppola came out in 1979. It is set at the height of the Vietnam War. U. S. Army Captain Willard is sent on a top secret mission into the jungles of Cambodia. His mission is to seek out and destroy Colonel Kurtz, who is believed to have gone completely insane. The novel Heart of Darkness and the movie Apocalypse Now have many parallels. Both works follow the same story line but presented in completely different contexts. Even though Apocalypse Now is based upon the book, there are still many differences in themes, characters, and events. The largest of these differences is the setting and time of the two works. While watching Apocalypse Now the viewer is able to observe many scenes that are similar with the novel Heart of Darkness. One of the most apparent of these scenes is when the natives attack the men on the boats. After the attack Coppola and Conrad both use fog to show the uncertainty the characters have in regards to completing their tasks. The men in the novel begin to randomly shoot into the jungle once the attack begins. They are unable to see their attackers so they are shooting completely blind. After the attack is over a large cloud of smoke from the men’s guns floating in front of the boat. Marlow then continues to lead the men of the boat blindly up the Congo River. In Apocalypse Now after the attack by the natives, a fog also surrounds the boat. In the movie the fog is used to represents Willard’s thoughts. Captain Willard is not sure whether what he is doing is worthwhile. He has no idea what he is getting himself into; one of his men has just died without even knowing the purpose of his mission. The fog in both stories is used to represent the leader’s uncertainty of their missions. In both Apocalypse Now and Heart of Darkness madness is represented during the attack. In the novel the Helmsman goes crazy and in the novel Chief is the character that succumbs to madness. In Heart of Darkness when the natives attack the boat the Helmsman begins to go crazy, jumping up and down going absolutely mad during the attack, acting like a complete animal. He begins shaking his empty rifle and screaming at the men on the shore he is unable to see. In the movie, Chief begins to go mad when he realizes that not even Willard knows the location of where they are headed. When the boat is to be attacked by the natives with harmless arrows the Chief goes absolutely absurd. Screaming at the shores completely exposing himself to his attackers. A huge mistake because as soon as Chief exposes himself a spear that turns out to be deadly hits him. There are many parallels between the novel Heart of Darkness and the movie Apocalypse Now. Throughout the entire movie there are scenes that are nearly identical to the novel. During the attack seen parallels with fog and madness can be seen in both Apocalypse Now and Heart of Darkness. How to cite Heart of Darkness Parallels, Papers

Law State Traffic Laws

Question: Discuss about a Report on Law for State Traffic Law? Answer: In the given scenario, Nabila, whom was a teacher travelling in the mini bus with school students. As the bus was severely hit by the high speeding car, the bus was turned upward down and people in the bus were not in the condition to move out of the same from the main door. When the help arrived, the rescue team had requested Nabila not to move out the bus by herself (as she was absolutely uninjured). In spite of this, Nabila had taken steps to move out the bus, from the rear door. While doing the same she fell from the bus and had hit her back, in a severe way. It is because of this reason, as she fell from the bus, nobody is entitled to actually compensate her for the injuries from the fall. As it was asked by the rescue team to not to move out from the bus, yet she did and therefore, for this particular reason the rescue team is not responsible for the injuries as she did not pay any heed to what was said by them. In this case it can be said that the court of law would give the case in favor of the rescue team as they had actually warned her not to move out of the bus. For this particular reason, the people along with Nabila were advised not to move out the bus. For this particular reason, it can be said that Nabila cannot file any case or suit against the rescue team. On the other hand, Olaf, on whom the passenger Harold was filing the case or a suit, drove the car because of which the accident took place. The major reason as to why he is to be considered as the main reason to be blamed for is because of the driving laws. The English driving laws obliges the driver to compensate for the injuries as experienced by a fellow passenger. The fine or penalty will be charged against him, and the driver will have to pay any compensation for the injuries of a fellow passenger. As per the driving laws, the driver will is entitled to compensate for the injuries if a person has been injured as well, being a fellow passenger in the car or the truck. The court of law allows the people to file a case or suit against the driver of the car to compensate the fellow passengers of the car or the truck. Apart from this, the major aspect, which is to be considered in this regard, is basically because of rules and regulation as determined by the driving laws. These driving laws have been stated by the relevant authorities in order to make sure that the driver is the one to be blamed for the rash driving all the time. Hence, it can be said that the fellow passengers can ask for claims from the person driving the car or the bus. Bibliography State Traffic Laws - FindLaw. 2016.State Traffic Laws - FindLaw. [ONLINE] Available at:https://traffic.findlaw.com/traffic-tickets/state-traffic-laws.html. [Accessed 07 February 2016]. Teen Driving Restrictions Colorado Department of Transportation - CDOT. 2016.Teen Driving Restrictions Colorado Department of Transportation - CDOT. [ONLINE] Available at:https://www.codot.gov/safety/colorado-teen-drivers/parent/teen-driving-restrictions.html. [Accessed 07 February 2016].