Marxism And Criminology

“The book, Marxism and Criminology, which I have received and read, must be the most extended treatment of Marx and crime made in many years...What I am fascinated by, and interested in, in this very impressive book, is the analysis according to the stages of capitalism in relation to forms of crime."—Prof. Richard Quinney"[This] path-breaking book compels us to revisit the insights of Marx and Engels and she challenges the dated, but often stated, claim made by orthodox Marxists (e.g., Hirst, 1975) that Marxist theory cannot be applied to the study of crime and law. Vegh Weis demonstrates that nothing can be further from the truth. As well, throughout her book, she contests the frequently cited declarations that Marx and Engels had very little to say about crime and that the sociology of law was little more than a secondary interest to them." —Walter S. DeKeseredy, Punishment & Society, "Marxism and Criminology is an excellent contribution to renew the debate on the causes of the growing demand for punitiviness and, at the same time, a questioning of the legal field auto-perception as emancipated from the conditions of production and reproduction of the life and the world."—Jorge Elbaum, Delito y Sociedad, Santa Fe, 2018. "[C]ertainly since Rusche and Kirchheimer and Foucault, we have an attempt at a general synthesis which brings together a vast range of empirical material on the dimensions of criminalisation which is then theorised in terms of a clearly articulated relationship to the central dynamic of capitalist development. The contribution of this book to the development of Marxist criminology and, reciprocally, criminologically-sensitive Marxism, is immense. If we want to understand where the world is heading, and the urgency of reform, then this is precisely the type of contribution we need." —Jhon Lea, The British Journal of Criminology"Valeria Vegh retakes, many decades later, the fundamental statements of Punishment and Social Structure by Rusche and Kirchheimer and goes beyond the strict consideration of the labor market to delve into the complex social and economic relations under which criminal demonstrations contemporarily take place [...] it is a real pleasure to present an investigation of the rigorousness that Valeria Vegh's work possesses. I hope that it has a long journey."—Iñaki Rivera Beiras, Critica Penal y Poder

• List of Tables and FiguresPrefaceAcknowledgements Chapter 1: IntroductionCriminological Theories and the Notion of ‘Criminal Selectivity’‘Criminal Selectivity’ through the Work of Marx and EngelsMarx and Engels’ Contributions Did Not Analyze Crime and Crime Control in Deep.Marx and Engels’ Contributions Understood Crime and Crime Control as Superstructural Aspects.Marx and Engels’ Constributions Lead to the Failure of ‘Real Socialism.’Marx and Engels’ Contributions Are Necessary to Analyze Crime and Crime ControlA Conceptualization of ‘Criminal Selectivity’ from a Marxist Perspective Chapter 2: Original Criminal SelectivityWhere, How and When of the ‘Primitive Accumulation’ (Late 15th to Early 18th Century).Original Conflict-ControlOriginal Under-CriminalizationOriginal Over-CriminalizationThe Different Application of Penalization and the Transit from Physical Punishment to WorkhousesWho Were the Social Sectors Targeted by Original Criminal Selectivity?Mixed insertion in the ‘Primitive Accumulation’Punishment during Original Criminal SelectivityManifest Functions.Latent FunctionsCreating a Disciplined Working ClassImposing a New Social OrderFragmenting the Dispossed SectorsMoral Entrepeneurs and Moral PanicsBrief Reflections Chapter 3: Disciplining Criminal SelectivityWhere, How and When of the Disciplining Social Order (late 18th century- late 20th century).Disciplining Conflict-Control First Disciplining Phase: Legally-Disciplining Criminal Selectivity (Late 18th Century) Legally-Disciplining Under-CriminalizationLegally-Disciplining Over-CriminalizationSecond Disciplining Phase: Police-Medically Disciplining Criminal Selectivity (19th Century)Police-Medically Disciplining Under-CriminalizationPolice-Medically Disciplining Over-CriminalizationThird Disciplining Phase: Socio-Disciplining Criminal Selectivity (Early to Late 20th Century)Socio-Disciplining Under-CriminalizationSocio-Disciplining Over-CriminalizationWho Were the Social Sectors Targeted by Disciplining Criminal Selectivity? Mixed Insertion in the Disciplining Social OrderPunishment during Disciplining Criminal SelectivityManifest FunctionsRetribution or ‘Just Deserts’ TheorySpecific Deterrence/Incapacitation TheoryGeneral Deterrence TheoryRehabilitation Theory Latent FunctionsDisciplining the Worker That Resisted the New Social Order and Its GuidelinesDisciplining the Entire Working ClassFragmenting the Working ClassMoral Entrepeneurs and Moral PanicsBrief Reflections Chapter 4: Bulimic Criminal SelectivityWhere, How and When of the Bulimic Social Order (Late 20th to 21th Century).Bulimic Conflict-Control Bulimic Under-CriminalizationBulimic Under-Criminalization on the ‘War on Terror.'Bulimic Under-Criminalization of Financial ManouversBulimic Over-CriminalizationBulimic Over-Criminalization on the ‘Social Junk.'Bulimic Over-Criminalization on the ‘Social Dynamite’ Who Were the Social Sectors Targeted by Bulimic Criminal Selectivity? Mixed Insertion in the Bulimic Social Order.Punishment during Bulimic Criminal Selectivity Manifest Functions.Latent Functions Incapacitating the problematic social sectorsControlling the Modern PauperismFragmenting the working classMoral Entrepreneurs and Moral PanicsPromoting a ‘crime control industry’ and the omnipresent control of the social whole. Brief Reflections Chapter 5: Final Reflections. References.Index