Marxism and NeoMarxism Flashcards
What is Marxism?
A type of economic system proposed by Karl Marx in which there are no classes.
Marxism advocates for a classless society and critiques capitalism.
What is meant by the term capitalism?
Pursuit to profit.
Capitalism involves private ownership of businesses aimed at generating profit.
Who are the private owners according to Marx?
The bourgeoisie.
Private owners are individuals who own businesses and profit from the labor of others.
What do the bourgeoisie do?
They own big businesses, employ people, pay small wages, and make huge profits from proletariat labor.
Examples of bourgeoisie include wealthy business owners like Bill Gates and Richard Branson.
What characterizes the proletariat?
They work for the bourgeoisie, often for minimum wage, and are forced to work to survive.
Proletariat refers to the working class in a capitalist society.
How do Marxists explain crime?
Through criminogenic capitalism which breeds competition and greed.
This perspective suggests that capitalism creates conditions for crime, especially white-collar and corporate crime.
What is criminogenic capitalism?
A concept that suggests capitalism breeds competitiveness, leading to corporate and white-collar crime.
It posits that economic structures influence criminal behavior.
What types of crime do Marxists focus on?
White-collar crime, corporate crime, and state crime.
Marxists argue these crimes are controlled less than petty crime and anti-social behavior.
What is Neo-Marxism?
A perspective that rejects the traditional view that economic necessity drives workers to crime.
It emphasizes the voluntary nature of crime and its political motives.
What do Taylor, Walton, and Young argue in their New Criminology?
Crime is a voluntary act often motivated by political reasons to redistribute wealth.
They believe criminals actively strive to change capitalism.
What is a criticism of Neo-Marxist theories?
Only a very small portion of crime is politically motivated or anti-capitalist.
Critics argue that Neo-Marxism does not provide practical solutions to crime.
True or False: According to Marxism, crime is primarily a result of individual choice.
False.
Marxism views crime as a consequence of economic structures rather than individual volition.
