The Classical Theory And Karl Marx's Theory Of Criminology

Introduction Since the early time of man there has been crime. From petty theft to rape, murder and the like, it has always been a part of our society. Criminology seeks to prevent criminal behavior both on individual and social levels. Criminology consists of many theories that attempt to explain why criminal acts are committed and break them down into parts that can be understood. A major Criminological theory that exists today is that known as the Classical Theory. The Classical Theory is very

Nature of the Theory The Classical school of criminology was brought about during the 18th century in a time of penal and criminological reformation. At this time and prior to, Criminal Justice was very arbitrary and not of that like today’s society.

Marxism is a radical theory of criminology and believes crime is the result of the wealthy oppressing the poor. This theory was not intentionally meant to describe crime at the time but was more so meant to promote socialism and demote Capitalism. Radical theorists then took his idea and attempted to put blame on the society rather than the individual – the major difference between Marxism and Classical. Marxist followers agree that the “destructiveness” of Capitalism promotes a “class struggle” which then leads to competition amongst the rich and poor which in turn leads to crime on both ends of the spectrum. Barbara Sims puts this into great context when she states, “Capitalism produces ‘haves and have-nots’. Each engages in a different type of criminality. ‘Have-nots’ take part in crime that can be done by the uneducated – using a knife or gun. ‘Haves’ engage in more sophisticated crime – using bank notes, stock trading or white collar crime” (Sims, 7). A great deal of other criminologists would argue that family structure, peer relations, intelligence and school performance are keeping the poor where they’re at. As can be seen, Marxist theory and Classical theory of Criminology both differ in a great deal – but mostly on where the blame is