Marxism And Crime

Question 1

Para 1

Answer 1

Capitalism is criminogenic

Question 2

Para 2

Answer 2

Selective law enforcement and selective law making

Question 3

Para 3

Answer 3

Ideological functions of crime

Question 4

Para 4

Answer 4

Neo Marxism - fully social theory

Question 5

Capitalism is criminogenic

Answer 5

Crime is inevitable due to capitalism.
Creates an increasing gap between rich and poor.
Poor turn to crime to afford necessities.
Capitalism creates greed, selfishness and Miele poverty.

Question 6

Gordon

Answer 6

Ulitarian crime - reaction to capitalism.
Non-ulitarian crime - reaction to frustration of exploitation.
4 loci of capitalism that make it criminogenic:
Greed, profit, competition, materialism.

Question 7

Evaluation for capitalism is criminogenic

Answer 7

Romanticises criminals

Left realists - ignores victims, higher rates of victimisation in poor

Question 8

Selective law enforcement

Answer 8

Criminal justice system applied laws to different social groups in different ways, working class and ethnic minorities criminalised.

Question 9

Example of selective law enforcement

Answer 9

Lavinia Woodward - Oxford student, stabbed boyfriend to death but only given suspended sentence as upper class.
Kevin Spacey - accused of 20 acts of sexual misconduct but not been charged as rich and powerful.

Question 10

Reiman

Answer 10

Ruling class more likely to commit crime than working class but less likely to be treated as a criminal.
E.g. social security fraud, tax evasion

Question 11

Selective law making

Answer 11

Laws reflect interest of ruling class, socially constructed to benefit powerful.

Question 12

Box

Answer 12

Rich often commit crime that leads in death/theft but protected under law.

Question 13

Chambliss

Answer 13

A lot of laws are to protect private property which profits ruling class.

Question 14

Snider

Answer 14

Corporate crime is more harmful than street crime but less regulated.

Question 15

Evaluation of selective law enforcement and law making.

Answer 15

Feminists - the criminal justice system often ignores crimes that women are more vulnerable to like sexual assault and domestic abuse and the courts often lean towards victim blaming rather than holding men accountable, could be argued the laws and criminal justice system benefits men.
Law makers are elected In democracies.

Question 16

Ideological functions of crime

Answer 16

Maintains false class consciousness.
Allows ruling class to remain dominant in society to prevent revolution.
Hides the role of capitalism in the cause of crime.

Question 17

Pearce

Answer 17

Laws are passed to seem like they benefit the working class but really benefit the ruling class eg. Homicide Act 2007.

Question 18

Evaluation of ideological functions of crime

Answer 18

There are still crimes in communist states like Russia.

Question 19

Fully social theory

Answer 19

Taylor, Walton and Young.
Working class are labelling to benefit ruling class.
Capitalism is a cause of crime but we should consider the individual causes of crime.

Question 20

Example of fully social theory

Answer 20

Hall, 1970s moral panic around muggers (young black men), to avoid talking about politic crisis.

Question 21

Evaluation of fully social theory

Answer 21

Ignores crime committed by women.

Not all crime has a political reason behind it like rape.