Using material from item A and elsewhere assess the usefulness of sub-cultural theories in explaining sub-cultural crime and deviance in society today. Subcultures, such as the ones mentioned in item A consist of a group of people whom share the same norms and values together, yet oppose mainstream culture. Criminals are seen to become part of a subculture as their values are different to normal society. These criminal individuals have rejected society’s norms and invented their own as they feel that society has rejected them, which means they become materially deprived and blame society as it has not met their needs. However, the criminals resort to things such as burglary to maintain materialistic property.
One subculturalist that believes crime is a collective activity is Albert Cohen. Cohen argues that crime is a collective response to strain. Individuals join together and form a subculture to cope with the feelings of strain. Strain is the gap between society’s goals and legitimate means of achieving them. But due to poor educational achievement and low paid manual work they are unable to gain these goals.
Merton’s approach explains how both normal and deviant behaviour can stem from the same goals, however it clearly ignores the power of the ruling class to make and enforce laws, and is too deterministic as not all working class people deviate. A.K Cohen alternatively disagrees with the majority of the strain theory as he states deviance is an individual not group response to strain, and believes Merton only focuses on utilitarian crimes and not crimes with no economic motives. Cohen suggests working class boys are the anomie in the middle class education system, and as they lack the skills to achieve they develop status frustration and therefore group together with those of a similar mind-set which creates a subculture. A.K Cohens view overall does not support the suggestion that crime and deviance are
Like the item says, 'functionalist sociologists focus on how far individuals accept the norms and values of society.' Durkheim blames people not being fully integrated into society’s norms and values as to why they commit crime. So he said once people have served their time for their crime, they should be reintegrated. It’s a strength that Durkheim suggests them being reintegrated as it means they’re less likely to reoffend if they feel they belong to their society and do not look for status through crime. However, interactionists would say that agents of social control cause crime, not the society you are in.
Once a label is given to an individual they become part of all the generalizations that go with that label (Siegel). For example, someone who has been convicted of a crime might be seen as someone who has no respect for the law. These labels also present a self-fulfilling prophecy. Being identified as a deviant, a person is usually ostracized from conventional social groups, and therefore is forced to become part of less desirable ones (Fitch). Being a member of less desirable social groups will only reinforce that they are a deviant, and increase their chances of engaging in deviant behaviors (O’Conner).
They were not content with the way that the social system was tiered with the rich and the poor when they began to believe that everyone was equal. People wanted to fix this problem and see why indeed society behaved the way it did. This is when you see important sociological figures emerge such as Comte, Spencer, and Marx. Although some of their ideals are not accepted today, these men were critical in the birth of this science known as Sociology. These Sociologists saw the discontent from these people and the despair on their faces.
‘The Outsiders’ Essay In the Novel The Outsiders by S.E Hinton, there is a social class warfare mostly through the novel. It explores the ideas that people are often judged by their looks and personalities rather than their personalities and actions, this statement is true to a certain extent, but towards the end, the actions of the greasers changes the public’s perception. The greasers are judged on their presentation and appearance, which is based on prejudice. There is social class warfare between the underprivileged greasers from the east side and the rich Socs from the west side. During the novel there is a turning point where most things change.
Diego A Duque Prof Roberts Soc 401 14 November 2011 Freud Vs. Marx Freud and Marx are both sophisticated and analytical writers that have extensive theories that pertain to society. The purpose of this essay is to distinguish the differences and similarities between their their main theories of freedom and the relationship between the individual and society. Both Freud and Marx have completely two different reasons why they are discontent with society but upon looking closer have many similarities. Freud believes that freedom creates pleasure but can not be achieved achieve due to the lack of resources that there is in society. Marx believes differently than Freud, in the sense that the desire for freedom and pleasure is attainable if there isn't someone telling society that they can't attain those goals The follow is essay will highlight the arguments of Freud's Civilization and It's Discontents and as well For Carl Marx's Marx/ Engels Reader.
The oppression of individuals transcends throughout many historical eras. Many instances occur because of the misuse of power, which compromises an individual’s integrity. It is the wishful thinking of society that individuals are educated about oppression to avoid more of these incidents, yet many countries still face racial and cultural barriers. In the essay “The Metropolis and Mental Life”, Georg Simmel states, “the deepest problems of modern life flow from the attempt of the individual to maintain the independence and individuality of his existence against the sovereign powers of society, against the weight of the historical heritage and the external culture and technique of life.” (Simmel, The Metropolis and Mental Life p. 316). Simmel’s ideology portrays culture’s ability to oppress individuals due to the effects of social norms and the abuse of power.
I have concluded that substance abuse is a huge contributor to crimes being committed. The lack or decrease in moral intuition and character can cause a person to make bad decisions. This would cause people not to understand the benefits of to abiding to common social values. A person demographics can also play a role in determining whether or not an individual will turn to a life of crime. Government officials, politicians, and courts employees have concluded that individuals commit crimes for private alternatives and they should be punished and held responsible for their actions and conduct.