Llesson 3: Atavistic Form

Question 1

Historical Approach to Offending

Answer 1

In 1876, Cesare Lombroso, an Italian physician, suggested that criminal individuals were ill-suited to modern society. He believed that criminals were
genetic throwbacks, a primitive sub-species, who were biologically different from non-criminals.

Offenders were seen by Lombroso as lacking evolutionary development, their savage and untamed nature meant that they would find it impossible to adjust to the demands of civilized society and would inevitably turn to crime. As such,
Lombroso saw criminal behaviour as a natural tendency, rooted in the genealogy of those who engage in it.

Question 2

Atavistic Form

Answer 2

Lombroso argued that the criminal sub-species could be identified by a set of particular physiological characteristics that were linked to particular types of
crime. These were biologically determined atavistic (meaning reversion to something ancestral) characteristics, mainly features of the face and head,
which indicate that criminals are physically different from the rest of us.

In terms of cranial characteristics, the atavistic form included a narrow, sloping brow, a strong prominent jaw, high cheekbones and facial asymmetry. Other physical features included dark skin and extra, toes, nipples or fingers.

Murders were described as having bloodshot eyes, curly hair, and long ears. Sexual deviants as having glinting eyes, swollen/fleshy lips and projecting ears.
Lips of fraudsters were thin and ‘reedy’.

Besides physical traits Lombroso also suggested that there were other characteristics of the born criminal, including insensitivity to pain, use of criminal slang, tattoos and unemployment.

Lombroso meticulously examined the facial and cranial features of Italian convicts, both living and dead, and proposed that the atavistic form was associated with a number of physical anomalies which were key indicators of criminality. In total, Lombroso examined the skulls of 383 dead criminals and 3839 living ones, and concluded that 40% of criminal acts could be accounted for by the criminal subspecies.

Question 3

Advantages of Atavistic Form

Answer 3

+ The atavistic form had an important role in the shift away from theories based on feeble-mindedness, wickedness and demonic possession. It was the forerunner to more biological explanations (evolutionary and genetic).

Question 4

Disadvantages of Atavistic Form

Answer 4

• Several critics have drawn attention to the distinct racist undertones in Lombroso’s work. Many of the features he described as atavistic (e.g. dark skin
  and curly hair) are most likely to be found in people of African descent. His claim that atavistic characteristics were uncivilized, savage and primitive supported the eugenic philosophy.
• Goring (1913) set out to establish if there were any physical or mental abnormalities among the criminal classes. After conducting a comparison of 3,000 criminals and 3,000 non-criminals he concluded that there was no evidence that offenders had particular facial and cranial characteristics. However, he did suggest that criminals are more likely to have a below average
  intelligence.
• Lombroso did not compare his criminal sample to a non-criminal control group. If he had done then the differences he reported may have disappeared.
• Even if criminals have atavistic characteristics this not necessarily mean that these characteristics cause their criminal behaviour. Facial and cranial features can be influenced by poverty and poor diet, which can also lead people to crime