Positive Function of Crime to the Society

Positive function of crime to the society

Crime can generally be regarded as the behavior that violates the law code of the state. One proposed definition is that a crime, also called an offence or a criminal offence, is an act harmful not only to some individual, but also to the community or the state (Elizabeth, 2003). We are all educated since the very beginning of or life that we are never to do anything against the law and this is basically what an education system would be doing – to make sure no one would be deviant of the society and stimulate the sense of abiding to the law. But, what would a society be without crime? Not even the petty crime such as crossing road during red traffic light? It would probably be either there’s no definition of crime or the people in the society are all perfectly stick to the law and all people are able to abide to the law without mental handicap, which would be merely impossible. According to Durkheim, crime – or at least a certain limited amount of crime – was necessary for any society. He further stressed that only certain, limited amount of crime is necessary to perform positive functions for society. We will discuss how certain crimes have benefited the society.

Female crime – The victimization of female and changing values

Aileen Wuornos was a female serial killer who murdered seven men in Florida for which she was executed, though she claimed that the victims have either raped or tried to rape her while she was working as a prostitute, and that all of the homicides were committed in self-defense. Later study have found that she was having a harsh childhood whose father was a psychopath (Silvio, Heather, McCloskey, Kathy, Ramos-Grenier & Julia, 2006), and mother abandoned her and her brother out of the stress of single–parenting. Her grandfathers and mothers took up the responsibilities to take care of them. She began participating in sexual activities in school in exchange for cigarettes, drugs, and food (Howard and Peter, 2007). She was raped by her grandfather's friend at age 14 (Silvio, Heather, McCloskey, Kathy, Ramos-Grenier & Julia, 2006) and pregnant and gave birth to boy at a home for unwed mothers one year later (Howard, Amanda & Martin, 2004). When Wuornos was 15, she began supporting herself as a prostitute and living in the woods near her old home as she was forced to leave the house by her grandfather (Howard, Amanda & Martin, 2004). She engaged in several criminal activities in her later part of life and reached her final destination after being arrested and executed following her confession to the murders of seven males. She was the one who chose her own death as it was the time when death sentence was abolished in her state, had she not, she would probably still be alive and living in her cell (Sue, 2013).

Victimization of woman was something to be discussed about after the case of Wuornos because it could be said that she was actually experienced revictimisation which refers to where the victim of previous abuses and crime as a child has a higher tendency to be victimised again, either shortly thereafter or much later in adulthood, especially in cases of sexual abuse (Messman & Patricia, 1996). Wuornos was abandoned when she was young and believed to be forced to engage in sexual activities in search for food for survival and drugs for escaping the reality. She was also raped by her grandfather’s friend and pregnant. She was forced to leave her child because she cannot support to raise him. She had no way but to revictimise and become a prostitute after she was kicked away from her so–called ‘home’. She was, after all, a victim of crime with no proper social values as she was compelled to drop school after her baby was born (Silvio, Heather, McCloskey, Kathy, Ramos-Grenier & Julia, 2006). Learned helplessness theory further described the commitment of crime of Wuornos as when she was a child, she was put in situations that she have little to no hope of escaping, especially when the abuse comes from a caregiver who would be her grandfather. It was the hopelessness that encouraged her criminal behavior as she already has nothing left.

When female offenders are studied now, people began to investigate further into their past and see if there’re things that drove those female to become offenders. As feminist argue criminological articles neglect the victimization of women (O'Brien & Jodi A., 2009), the better understanding of values behind this issue will create a better society as consequence with balance of both gender’s concern and interest. Moreover the resulting public discussion can indicate a change in common values which ignored the victimization of women and, in time can lead to a change in law to reflect the changing values. Furthermore, society can learn from the female crimes to propose and review measures to prevent the victimisation and revictimisation of female which could be one of the potential reasons that drive them to become criminals.