Exam 2 Flashcards
rationality and natural law: universal truths
universal truths exist independently of our own subjective thoughts and experiences. we know these things for certain j by thinking abt them. (ex: tree falls in forest b/c laws of gravity. we dont need to be there to know it fell)
well known examples of universal laws of human nature
Hobbes- human nature to seek peace thru war
Hobbes/Rousseau- the social contract
lock/jefferson- humans have natural right to life, liberty, property, equality
what is more superior..natural laws or human made laws
natural laws are superior to human made laws
kant on rationality/natural law
a priori truth exists but we can never know them directly b/c its limited by subjectivities of our mind. moral truths about right and wrong exist but we cant know them directly. we can never know if natural laws really exist but we must take faith that they do.
distinguishing normal from pathological: a preliminary method
if a phenomena exists in every single case then it is normal. (everyone does things wrong sometimes so deviance is normal and socially healthy)
give example of statistical deviance
if a person never does anything wrong/deviant then that is not normal and something is wrong with them since everyone sometimes does things wrong
normality determined by effect on organism
determines normal from pathological by asking how it effects society and if society functions well with it or if it throws societal systems out of balance
generals about distinguishing normal from pathological
ideological method has solution saying sole means to judge phenomena is to relate them to overriding thing. since deviance is relative what works for one society might not work for another. something can be termed pathological only in relation to a given species.
why is crime normal?
b/c it exists in every society. crime must be in a society to be healthy. its human nature to deviate and inevitable that deviations will be labeled criminal.
why is crime useful?
b/c you need freedom for society to evolve/change. to have the idealist you need the criminal.
what does deviance/crime have to do with social solidarity?
it reinforces it
definitions of good and evil?
these definitions are linked to social life. as society changes, so do definitions of good and evil.
how are witch hunts/moral panics an application of durkheim?
b/c deviance holds society together. when people break the law they give others the opportunity to define community boundaries. implies outcasts serve purpose to society
Erikson: holy experiment
how/why does a community decide which behavior merits attention? why do some things get labeled deviant but not others? to answer this use definitions of deviance used by sociological group of study
functionalism
communities encourage and discourage deviance at same time. deviance includes rites of transition into permanent deviant identities. creates population on the fringes of society.
what is eriksons general hypothesis
when community boundaries shift, deviant behavior shifts.
what is a crime wave
increased publicity of a particular brand of deviant behavior. may/may not correspond to increase in deviant behavior. not always new behavior, can be emerging need to clarify pre-existing boundary lines
what are the three crime waves
antinomian controversy of 1636, quaker persecutions of late 1650’s, witchcraft hysteria of 1692
antinomian controversy of 1636
people did not like the new settlers coming to the colony. the colony was setting up a new govt which was gov by church, clergy decided if ppl were pious enough to vote. Anne hutchinson passed judgement on men and churches control. she was charged with treason for her opinions along with her friends
quaker persecutions of late 1650s
support in England for there great experiment died and they felt lost since no one was looking to them as model for ideal society. then the Quakers showed up, the invasion was about resisting change into new brand of puritanism. 2 women showed up and were arrested the second they stepped on shore. belongings burned.
what was result of quaker invasion?
they called them an army but they really slowly trickled yet, Quakerism banned (which is basically just being British). there were lots of executions. anti-loitering law called vagabond act passed
in 1660 what did charles 11 do when quakers complained to him
he issued an order of religious freedom in colonies, they can no longer limit vote based on church membership.
witchcraft hysteria of 1692
colony had lost favor with king, original settlers on brink of collapse. dissention among original settlers grew. girls in colony start acting strange and they accused people of being witches based on what the girls said with no real evidence
why did the girls say people were witches
they liked the power and accused politically/economically powerful people
