CLASSICAL CRIMINOLOGY

Classical Criminology developed from the great transformations of modernity. These were the industrial urban and scientific revolutions that led to Enlightenment. Enlightenment thinkers such as Locke, Diderot and Turgot in order of generations championed:

·         Anti Clericalism

·         Rationalism

·         Legal and Constitutional Reform

They were important for criminology as before:

·         It was believed the social world had more religious explanations and causes such as being possessed by a demon. However upon the aftermath it introduced theories that the social world has secular causes.

·         Promoted the ideology of Progress where knowledge of human affairs would be used to reform and improve society.

Classical Criminology is concerned with explaining crime as a rational thing. Prior in the pre-modern world spiritualism gave rise to specific methods of trials before in the CJS. Vold and Bernard, 1979 used the following examples of Trial by Punishment, Trial by Ordeal and Compurgation. Rather than these invalid methods Classical Criminology replaced them with naturalistic explanations of crime.

   The classical perspective was focused on reason and passion. A criminal is defined as a person who places their passion before their reasoning. This philosophical aspect argued that criminals have the “free will” to choose either, so it was their own fault and that was what separated them from law abiding citizens. It provides the first modern understanding of crime and criminal justice.

    The theory has however been criticized for being an over simplistic understanding of deviant motives and not diagnosing the social roots of crime.

Beccaria – Was the most influential classical criminologist who was concerned with explaining the rationality of crime disregarding the spiritualistic approach. (On Crimes & Punishment, Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill)

Vold and Bernard, 1979- Used the following examples of Trial by Punishment, Trial by Ordeal and Compurgation. Rather than these invalid methods Classical Criminology replaced them with naturalistic explanations of crime.