Neo-marxism on critical criminology

Question 1

Briefly outline three ways in which Taylor et al agree with Marxists.

Answer 1

• Capitalist society is based on exploitation and class conflict and characterised by extreme inequalities of wealth and power
• Laws are made in capitalists’ interests and criminalise those of working class
  Capitalism should be replaced with a classless society

Question 2

2. According to Taylor et al, in what way is Marxism deterministic?

Answer 2

Taylor et al argue that Marxism is deterministic. For instance, it sees workers as driven to commit crime out of economic necessity.

Question 3

3. Briefly explain what is meant by a voluntaristic view

Answer 3

Taylor et al take a more voluntaristic view (voluntarism is the idea that we have free will). They see crime as a meaningful action and conscious choice.

Question 4

A fully social theory of deviance (page 90)
1. Briefly outline the two main sources of this theory.

Answer 4

• Marxist ideas about unequal distribution of wealth and who has power to make and enforce the law
  Ideas from interactionism and labelling theory about the meaning of the deviant act for the actor, societal reactions to it and the effects of deviant label on the individual.

Question 5

2. Briefly outline the six aspects of a fully social theory of deviance.

Answer 5

1. Wider origins of the deviant act
2. The immediate origins of the deviant act
3. The act itself and its meaning for the actor
4. The immediate origins of social reaction
5. The wider origins of social reaction
6. The effects of labelling on future actions