SOC205H5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Demonology
Document Summary
Criminological theories: theories reflect the social, economic, political and historical contexts in which they emerge, changes rapidly over time, crime is historically contingent, crime today might not be crime tomorrow as laws change radically, ex. Naturalistic explanations: due to the inability to test spiritualistic theories scientifically, modern theory often rely on explanations based in the physical world, which are called, naturalistic explanations, naturalistic theories and spiritualistic explanations have in common their origins in the ancient world, naturalistic theories seek explanations that are more rooted in physical facts. The classical school: criminal as calculator: the most important feature of the classical school of thought is its emphasis on the individual criminal as a person who is capable if calculating what he or she wants to do (free will to do what they please, ex. those who committed an act were punished with death; type of criminal act did not matter.
