SOC205H5 Midterm: SOC205 Midterm
Document Summary
Soc205 midterm: the building of theory is usually a reaction of something before it, why did it emerge, the political conditions that allowed these theories to emerge. What then is criminological theory: edwin sutherland"s definition. Criminology is the body of knowledge regarding crime as a social phenomenon. It includes within its scope the process of making laws, of breaking laws, and of reaction toward the breaking of laws. Inventing criminology: spiritual explanations, classical school of criminology. Spiritual explanations: stressed the conflict between good and evil. People who committed crimes were thought to be possessed by evil spirits (referred to as sinful demons) Devil made me do it explanations: the major problem with spiritualistic explanations is that they cannot be tested scientifically or validated empirically. Spiritualism and punishment: trial by ordeal: subject the individual to some form of torture, and that if innocent, god would save them.
