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Essay / Social construction of crime and deviance
The life of a human being is governed by the social norms and rules created within society. According to Anthony Giddens, there is another side to the story, namely the norms and rules that are broken by Giddens in 1989. A crime is known as an act against the law which then results in punishment for that which been committed. For example, if a person sells drugs abroad and makes a profit to support themselves and their family, this is considered a crime in the UK because they are doing something illegal . Another example of crime could be the serial murder of an elderly woman at a bus station by a worker for financial gains and sometimes for thrill reasons. Not everyone who committed crimes is prosecuted and not everyone who committed crimes has been arrested. Crime is selective because there are different levels of crime and therefore it is not unique. This shows that not everyone gets the same treatment and is therefore somehow selected. If a black man was caught red-handed, he would go straight into the system and probably never see it again. It's not because of their race that a light-skinned person has nothing on their side. Police officers are more likely to target those in poorer communities. Becker said police work within the boundaries of certain biases and stereotypes and what is considered a "problem." This shows that this is not a measurable behavior. For example, if a group of women were drinking and having fun outside an event building, the police would not arrest them, unlike a group of men doing the exact same thing. They would have rather been amused by the group of women. This shows that not everyone is treated the same. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay On the other hand, deviance does not have a simple definition in the sociological context. Downes and Rock state that deviance may be considered forbidden or known as controlled behavior that results in punishment. Such behavior includes murder and rape, which are unacceptable and forbidden in many cultures and carry severe penalties. Deviance is mostly covert and hidden from the public eye, therefore sneaky in character, it is often undercover and can be found, hidden in normal contexts such as in workplaces or at home. Take the example of serial killer Douglas Vinter, 39, who was convicted of stabbing and strangling his wife three years after his release from prison. This person appeared to be a normal family man, but he privately committed the murder of his wife. On top of that. He was able to use his normal social skills and appear innocent. No one will know what he did because it wasn't caught. This shows that a form of behavior can be classified as deviant while still being considered normal. Sociologists believe that crime and deviance are social constructs. This is often the doing of the ruling class. If someone acts in an unpleasant or poor manner while in court, then it is deviance because they have behaved in a way that is outside of normal behavior. Howard Becker said that deviant acts are those that have been labeled. What makes something deviant is how people react to what is being done. For example, if a famous person is caught committing criminal activities, they are labeled and known for.