Crime As A Socially Constructed Phenomenon: A Discussion

The Criminological Schools of Thought

Crime is a socially constructed phenomenon’. Discuss this statement with reference to:

a) The criminological schools of thought;

b) The emergence of the victim in criminological thought;

c) Different definitions of crime; and

d) Measuring crime and victimisation.

One of the major social menaces is crime. It makes the society into the hazards. In present society crimes and criminals are very much affective as to the harm of the society. The basic concept of crime signifies that it is the breach of the right of an individual and these breaches will not only the breach of right but also it causes harm to the body or property of that individual. Crime denotes causing harm to the body or property of a person (Treadwell, 2006). In every country there are some specific laws relating to the crimes, breaching any of those laws is to be penalized according to the provision specified in the concern statute. If any person causes harm with the intension to cause such harm to another person then that person shall be liable for punishment in accordance with the penal provision of the country. In committing a criminal activity the intention from the part of the person who is going to commit the crime is very much essential to evaluate the crime s well as the implication of the punishment to the person who has committed the criminal activity. Any person who commits any criminal act is known as criminal. For the proper governance and keeping social security crimes must be eliminated in an adequate manner, it is the obligation from the part of the concern government to make essential laws in relation to control and elimination of crimes from the society (Liu and Yang, 2007). 

In the concept of criminology, the Classical School generally refers in the direction of the work for the duration of the Enlightenment by the utilitarian and social-contract philosophers Jeremy Bentham and Cesare Beccaria in the 18th century. Their attention lies down in the structure of criminal justice and penology and, in a roundabout way, in the course of the proposition so as to “human beings are a manipulative animal”, in the grounds of the criminal behavior. The Classical School of thought be premised on the thought that public encompass free will in creation of decisions, and that punishment be able to be a restriction for crime, on condition that the retribution is proportional, hysterics the crime, and is approved promptly (Karmen, 2013).    

In the middle of 18th century, criminology took place at the same time as the social philosophers presented their contemplation as to crime and perception of law. With the passing of time, more than a few schools of thought have enlisted their feet in the legal phenomena. There were three major schools of thought in near the beginning of criminological theory across the period from the middle of 18th century to the middle of twentieth century; Positive ,Classical, and Chicago. These schools of thought were out of date by numerous modern paradigms of criminology, like the control, sub-culture, labeling, strain, critical criminology, postmodern criminology, cultural criminology, feminist criminology (Gray, 2004).

In every criminal activity there must be a victim upon whom the crime has been implicated. The victim suffers from the loss or injury or both by the act of the person who has committed the crime. The person who commits the crime is known as the criminal and in the proceedings that person is known as an accused. Whenever any criminal act implicated upon a person that is upon the victim, the victim falls in a very difficult and in an emergence kind of situation. Here, the victim may have to suffer from either any kind of loss relating to his property or any kind of bodily injury implicated to him by the criminals. In such a situation the victim falls in an emergence situation as to rescue his or her property from the hand of the criminals or to rescue himself or herself from the injury implicated. In case of implication of any injury, the victim may be in such a situation that he is not able to rescue himself from the ongoing circumstances (Yaffe, 2014).  

For the purpose of restraining criminal activity appropriate strict in nature laws must be enacted and the acts relating to any sought of crime must penalized to a good extend. But by way of enacting statutes and laws is not enough, the actual implementation of the concern laws must be done in a prosperous manner and the executive bodies must be well capable in relation to the proper execution of the enacted laws relating to restraining criminal acts. The main executive body in relation to the criminal acts and the proper improvisation of the relevant statutory provisions is the police. And there are many other competent higher authorities are also there for the purpose of keeping social phenomena free from crimes as well as to look after the major criminal acts which may affect in a larger prospect (Shiner, 2009).

The Emergence of the Victim in Criminological Thought

Each state restrains a specific series of acts which are prohibited and punishable by the state authority, implicated by the judicial system, the punishment may be a fine or imprisonment or both or any other kind of punishment, and this limited series of acts can be recognized as criminal acts, the punishment for committing such an act is governed by the concern penal statute of the nation (Zedner, 2012).  

According to Jeff Marsh, “An act crime is a unlawful act of such a manner that the State considers it compulsory, in the interests of the public in general, to suppress it; for its replication would be injurious to the society as a whole.” Here the expert tried to elaborate the meaning of the term ‘crime’; it may be any act which depends upon the principals laid down by the state authority and punishable under the concern legislation framed by the competent legislatures in relation to the criminal activity (Carrabine et al. 2014).

In accordance with the definition given by Pollard, crime denotes any wrongful act with the intention to do that, which violates the right of any other person by causing damage to the property of that person or by causing any sought of bodily injury to that person. Here, the state authority is responsible to take necessary steps in relation to restrict this kind of acts and to provide social security to the public in general (Walklate, 2007).  

The term crime signifies any wrongful act by which the right of any other person has been infringed by causing damage to the belongings of that person or by causing any kind of physical injury to that person. One of the main essential in a criminal act is’ means rea’ which means criminal intention from the part of the person who is going to commit the crime. Without criminal intention if any act done which causes injury to the property or body of the victim then it will not amount to a crime but here the burden of proof lies upon the accused person (Sarre, 2012).

For the purpose of restraining the crimes the state authorities have to recognize the major reasons behind the criminal acts, the future probabilities are also to be measured in respect of limiting the criminal acts throughout the territory of the nation. Before making laws or enacting statutes or making any kind of amendments relating to the criminal laws, the actual present scenario in relation to the crimes in the society has to be identified by the state authorities. By way of proper identification of the nature of the crimes effective penal statutes can be enacted like criminal acts may differ from country to country and society to society for example adultery is an offence in India under the Indian Penal Code, 1860 but the same act is not an offence in United Kingdom, here adultery is allowed (Walklate, 2011).

Identification of the kind of victimization is necessary in relation to restrict the acts consisting criminal intention. There is a possibility that a particular group of people may be victimized by a certain criminal act, by virtue of that in restraining such an offence special provisions is to be adapted by the legislative bodies of the country. Identification of victimization in relation to making limitation as to the criminal acts is essential for the state authority as well as for gathering the report of further progress in the field of restraining criminal acts (Muncie, 2001).  

Conclusion:

After the above discussion it can be observed that crime is the biggest problem in the present social phenomena, it not only violates the right of another person but it also creates major concern for the state government itself. Criminals are not used do commit crimes after taking birth, the society and circumstances led them to do so for a basis level and their after this basic level goes to the higher towers of crimes. The government should look after the social conditions which may lead an innocent person in path of a hard core criminal. And for the habituated criminals strict penal provisions are to be implicated.

References

Gray, S. (2004). Criminal laws. Annandale, NSW: Federation Press.

Liu, X. and Yang, X. (2007). Xing fa xue zhuan lun =. Beijing: Beijing da xue chu ban she.

Shiner, R. (2009). Theorizing Criminal Law Reform. Criminal Law, Philosophy, 3(2), pp.167-186.

Yaffe, G. (2014). In Defense of Criminal Possession. Criminal Law, Philosophy.

Zedner, L. (2012). Terrorizing Criminal Law. Criminal Law, Philosophy, 8(1), pp.99-121.

Carrabine, E, Cox, P, Fussey, P, Hobbs, D, South, N, Thiel, D, & Turton, J (2014), ‘The enlightenment thinkers and early traditions’, inCriminology: a sociological introduction, 3rd edn, Routledge, Abingdon, Oxon, UK, pp. 49-65.

Walklate, S (2007), ‘Perspectives in criminological theory’, in Understanding criminology: Current theoretical debates, 3rd edn, Open University Press, Maidenhead, UK, pp. 17-37.

Karmen, A (2013), ‘What is victimology?’, in Crime victims: an introduction to victimology, 8th edn, Wadsworth/Cengage Learning, Belmont, pp. 1-35.

Walklate, S 2011, ‘Counting crime’, in Criminology: the basics, 2nd edn, Routledge, Abingdon, UK, pp. 29-51.

Muncie, J 2001, ‘The construction and deconstruction of crime’, in J Muncie & E McLaughlin (eds), The problem of crime, Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, pp. 7-70

Sarre, R 2012, ‘The criminal process’, in M Marmo, W De Lint & D Palmer (eds), Crime and justice: a guide to criminology, 4th edn, Thomson Reuters, Pyrmont, NSW, pp. 435-53.

Treadwell, J 2006, ‘Part three: study writing and revision skills’, in Criminology, SAGE, Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 128-168