Frank P. Williams III - Criminology Theory: Selected Classic Readings

SECOND EDITION

Criminology Theory: Selected Classic Readings, Second Edition

First published 1998 by Anderson Publishing
Published 2015 by Routledge
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Copyright 1993, 1998

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Williams, Franklin P.
Criminology theory : selected classic readings / Frank P.
Williams, III, Marilyn D. McShane. -- 2nd ed.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
ISBN 978-0-8704-201-6 (pbk)
1. Criminology.I.McShane, Marilyn D., 1956-.II. Title.
HV6018.W481998

ISBN-13: 978-0-8704-201-6 (pbk)

This anthology is a set of readings featuring major criminological perspectives. Except for two articles in the final section, all readings represent the staples of criminological theory. There is no attempt to include interesting readings, or excerpts from major works not directly associated with those theories commonly covered in textbooks and in courses in criminology. In part, this approach is derived from our own frustration, and that of several of our colleagues, with existing anthologies. The common approach seems to be for editors to excerpt from the major articles and then include a series of each editors own favorite articles. We generally found that the excerpted materials left out enough of the originals that we had to add pages and materials so that students could gain a fuller appreciation of the theorists work. Where the favorite articles are concerned, we often found ourselves telling students that these would not be used (in effect, informing students that one-half of the money they spent for the book was wasted). Thus, we decided that there should be a reader with only the core materials in criminological theory. This is that product.

The readings in this anthology are all from the original sources. We made every attempt to ensure their accuracy. We did, in some cases, correct misspellings and grammatical errors. In the case of the Beccaria reading, for instance, we used the earliest English-language version of the text we could find. The reader may be surprised by the difference in passion and intensity between our 1814 source and the Bobbs-Merrill/Paolucci translation commonly used in courses; and the text is, after all, a protest piece. In two other cases (Lombroso and Reckless), we used sources other than the usual ones because we felt they better reflected the average position of the theoretical perspective and would be more comprehensible for a first-time reader.

The two final selections were chosen for reasons other than the fact that they might be favorite pieces. The Cohen and Felson routine-activities article presaged the current emphasis on rationalistic theory and is fast becoming a classic. In order to make it more intelligible to undergraduate readers, we excerpted the theoretical thrust of the article and eliminated the empirical materials and the statistical analysis and discussion. The Klein article is also a classicrepresenting the first of the feminist critiques of male-dominated theorizing. In addition, it serves to help students appreciate the shortcomings of classic theories. While it is true that gender-based critiques and theories have come a long way since the Klein article was published, none have yet been ascribed the status of a classic.

This edition of the anthology includes two new readings, requested by those who are using it in their courses. The two additions are excerpts from the works of Jeremy Bentham and Richard Quinney. The Bentham excerpt is drawn from an old version of his Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. We purposefully left old spellings and grammatical idiosyncracies in the excerpt because we believe they add to the sense of reaching into the past (we did, however, eliminate the various footnotes). Bentham had much more to say about crime than we were able to capture here, but students reading the material will certainly be able to ascertain the general approach to crime and crime prevention of his day.

Richard Quinneys Social Reality of Crime, on the other hand, was not a difficult selection to excerpt. The core presentation of the book is concisely outlined with six propositions in the first chapter. Those who have been exposed to Quinneys theory, largely through textbook commentary, may be surprised to find out just how integrative it was. He used concepts from virtually all of the major theories of the day and wove them into a pluralist conflict perspective with an eye toward the importance of media in society. This selection was omitted from the first edition not because it was not worthy, but because we were concerned with space. Those who are familiar with the Lone Ranger know the importance we place on Quinneys work. We now rectify that omission.

Even with these two additions, instructors will still find that there are a few of their favorite theory articles that are omitted. This anthology purposefully serves only as a core for a course in criminological theory. We still believe that this approach offers the best compromise to placing readings on reserve and using only one-half of the selections in a more general anthology. Instructors can easily place other articles on reserve in the library or use one of the many photocopying services to add a package of supplementary materials for their specific course objectives. Our goal was to help keep the reserve reading list to a minimum.

One other point should be made in regard to instructor preferences. Classification of the theories into the various sections is a rather arbitrary process. Different texts and instructors classify the theories differently depending upon their assumptions, chronological order, relationship with other theories, and so forth. We used two criteria for categorizing theories: first, we used a logical order of similarity in presenting theoretical materials to students and, second, we used chronological order where appropriate. Thus, we placed Akers learning theory after its intellectual father, differential association, in order to continue the logical threads. Similarly, Millers focal concern theory, even though it was a conflict-based theory, was included with subculture theories because it was an important part of the subcultural delinquency literature of the 1950s. Instructors with other preferences should mix the readings in whatever fashion matches their teaching style.