Murder - it’s violent, malicious, and it’s perpetrated by individuals with a large bone structure, large muscles and a naturally athletic physique. Can this be an accurate statement? Murder is the act of unlawfully and deliberately killing someone. It is considered a serious offence in Canada. One biological criminological theory could explain this heinous crime. It may be possible to draw a connection between the aggressive personality of some men and the crime of murder. The theory of somatotyping suggests large aggressive men may be more apt to commit murder. In the year 2015, 604 murders were committed in Canada, with 174 being committed in Ontario (Stats Canada, 2015.) Murder is a very serious crime and is an indictable offense in …show more content…
Somatotypes are anatomical categories used describe the varying body shapes of men. William Sheldon invented and analyzed these somatotypes in relation to explaining criminal behaviour and temperament. He developed the idea of three main somatotypes: the mesomorph, the ectomorph, and the endomorph. Men described as mesomorphs have well-defined muscles and large bones. The bones and muscles of the head are prominent, described as having a square face with pronounced cheekbones. Mesomorphs are somotonic, meaning they are active, dynamic, assertive and aggressive in nature. Ectomorphs have a frailer and lighter physique in comparison with the other two. The bones are light, muscles are slight and they have relatively long arms with drooping shoulders. Ectomorphs tend to have long faces, fingers, toes and necks. They are depicted as being cerebrotonic, and are characterized as intellectuals, emotionally restrained, and introverted. The body of endomorphs can be described as being round and soft with a high waist, soft skin and fine hair. The heads of endomorphs are spherical and larger, with broad faces. They are associated with having a viscerotonic personality, which can be defined as sociable, easy-going and comfort …show more content…
Unlawfully and deliberately killing someone is an act that has no regard for human life. If the crime is incredibly fierce, involving active participation and little regard for the person being killed, somatotyping may explain why some murders occur. Using the same inductive reasoning as Sheldon, it is quite possible to assume mesomorphs are more prone to committing murder. Sheldon’s theory of somatotyping may be directly connected to the motives involved in committing murder that are present in the somatotyping of mesomorphs. This type of evidence provides an accurate clear possibility that mesomorphs may be more disposed to
Murder at the Margin is a murder mystery involving various economic concepts. The story takes place in Cinnamon Bay Plantation on the Virgin Island of St. John. It is about Professor Henry Spearman, an economist from Harvard. Spearman organizes an investigation of his own using economic laws to solve the case.
A society that presumes a norm of violence and celebrates aggression, whether in the subway, on the football field, or in the conduct of its business, cannot help making celebrities of the people who would destroy it, (Lapham, 1985). Unfortunately, such acts of rampage have become a prevalent factor in the Canadian culture. As a result of endless media coverage, Canadians now are constantly bombarded with countless images of violence. Many of which often portray a victim avenging their opponent by force. Thus, indoctrinating individuals to believe that it is only through aggression that problems are resolved. Rather than being punished for acts of violence, those who commit such offenses are often praised for their “heroism”. In addition, the success of films like The Godfather, Gladiator, and Troy further aid in reinstating we live in a society that praises violence. Furthermore, this ideology allows for people to partake in violent acts with little or no backlash from ones community. However, when an person strays away from the “norm”, they are likely to then be viewed as a deviant. Such cases of rejection within a society, are often seen in the portrayal of serial killers. Although our society tends to condone violence when it is directed towards a specific individual(s), it does not allow the killing of innocent bystanders. Instead, crimes that are targeted against a number of people over a long period, entail the harshest forms punishments under the law. Sadly, in executing the law for said crimes, those in charge often face much public scrutiny. Such occurrences were apparent in the faulty murder investigations of Canada's most notorious serial killer Robert Pickton. This is due to the fact that, the negligence of the Vancou...
Capital punishment was the most severe punishment within the Canadian Justice system before it was abolished in the 1970’s. It is still used in many other countries around the world such as the United States, China and India, as it is believed to lower the crime rate within their country. Capital punishment was basically a form of torturing the suspect, but to their death as a consequence of their heinous crime. Many believe that capital punishment should be reinstated into Canada, while others are strongly against the suggestion and I believe the same.
This paper explores three criminological theories as to why Jeffrey Dahmer committed his crimes. Although these approaches vary in terms of defining the cause of crime, one thing is certain, there is no single cause of crime; the crime is rooted in a diversity of causes and takes a variety of forms depending on the situation in which the crimes occur. However, the published articles vary in their definitions and uses of Criminological Theory. Rawlins (2005) suggest that the criminal phenomenon is too complex to be explained by a single theory. Other theories suggest differently and; therefore, have varying explanations. This paper examines the Psychological, Biochemical, and Social Process theories to slightly explain Jeffrey Dahmer’s actions.
Welsh, B., & Irving, M. (2005). Crime and punishment in Canada, 1981-1999. Crime and Justice, 33, 247-294. Retrieved from http://library.mtroyal.ca:2063/stable/3488337?&Search=yes&searchText=canada&searchText=crime&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dcrime%2Bin%2Bcanada%26acc%3Don%26wc%3Don&prevSearch=&item=18&ttl=33894&returnArticleService=showFullText
While many factors can be reported to showcase the reasons why an individual would be led to such violence, ethology remains the single most accurate theory in explaining the many facets of gang violence by showing the parallels between animal behavior and the lifestyle of gang members. Ethology also attempts to explain the violence exhibited by humans as corresponding to violence displayed by animals. For predatory animals, violence is necessary for survival and adaptation to the surroundings is vital. Genetically humans are closest to chimpanzees, which “routinely engage in murder, assassination, rape, raid...
Serial killers are defined to “be driven by instinct and desire to kill.” In a study done in 2000, Dr, Richard Davidson says, “people with a large amount of aggression – in particular people who have committed aggressive murders or have a social disorder – have almost no brain activity in the orbital frontal cortex or the anterior cingulated cortex while activity in the amyglade continued perfectly. The orbital frontal cortex and the anterior congulated cortex control emotional impulses while the amyglade controls reactions to fear.” Davidson concludes his research claiming that although environment can and will affect a serial killer’s thoughts, it is a killer’s genetic makeup that inevitably creates murderous thoughts.
We can all agree that serial killers are unpredictable scary people but when it comes to why they kill, everyone has a different view. In my research paper I will get into the mind of a serial killer and try to figure out what exactly sets them into uncontrollable rage.
Criminals always have some sort of motivation to execute crimes. Whether it be that they are low on money or that they have a brutal relationship with someone, they know the consequence will never be as grave as a death penalty in Canada. However, what if that changed? What if the punishment of homicide lead to the death penalty? Criminals might re-consider the consequence of executing the crime and decisively disregard it due to the very dreadful amercement. The death penalty could save lives of the criminals as well as their victims. Hence, the death penalty is an adequate way to make criminals bethink their crime and it could potentially ...
Canada is a big country and has a population of about 36 million people, about 4% of that population is aboriginal people. In canada aboriginal people are 17% of the murder victims. 29% of the aboriginal people murdered are women and 92% of aboriginal women are murdered by family or acquaintances.
Nature versus nurture has been argued in attempt to understand how criminals behave. The theory of what influences psychopath and serial killers’ violent and destructive pathways has not been agreed on till this day. Criminals such as psychopaths and serial killers have been researched for the past two decades. Scientists have found that genetics is a determining factor of who becomes a serial killer. It is important to understand the determinants involved within a serial killer, because if these social and environmental causes are discovered, they can be altered and controlled to reduce crime (Lykken, 1993). With more studies, we would therefore prevent mass murders and could assist in significant reductions of crime within society.
The article mentions the thought process of evolutionary psychologists to demonstrate the justification of murderous actions in the
When people hear the word ‘psychopath’ what comes to mind tend to be images of Hannibal Lecter and mugshots of seemingly unperturbed serial killers. However, it seems that in their place what should be seen are CEOs, lawyers, surgeons and - somewhat ironically - police officers (Clay, 2013).
The geographical location of the individual contributes to the possibility of being murdered (Karmen, 2016). To further expound on this point, “likelihood of victimization is largely determined by a pattern in which residence in metropolitan areas with high population density and poor economies represent high-risk” (LeClair, 2017, Module 2, Lesson 4, p. 12). For example, an industrialized nation such as Australia has a murder rate of 1 per 100,000 inhabitants as compared to a developing country like
As has been shown, the death penalty should not be legal and should never be in Canada. Many jail sentences can be influenced by race or appearance, and there are copious amounts of people who are unfairly convicted and tried, and the death penalty would make the repercussions of a mistrial fatal. Furthermore, Capital Punishment is not a deterrent nor is it effective, as States without the death penalty have had consistently lower murder rates than states that chose to utilize this atrocious conduct (Deterrence: States Without the Death Penalty Have Had Consistently Lower Murder Rates). Not only is the death penalty unprincipled, but it places the right to murder into the government and justice systems hands. In a country where we strongly