1. Is aggression an innate and deterministic quality from birth, or is it something that one that all can control, as a matter of free will and choice, to be used when we need it in a calculated manner? At birth all people are born with aggression as a survival trait. As we educate ourselves as we have seen in the video “The Truth About Violence” even in an educated culture such as the United States we still have violence. Violent people and we are drawn to violent sports such as cage fighting and football. Even the most mild manner people who don’t like violence in movies, sports or anywhere else can find enjoyment from participating in violence. When a person results to violence I don’t believe they can control the amount of aggression
I understand that stealing is wrong and I know in the medieval times that stealing could get your hand cut off which to me is a little extreme but I guess it was used as a deterrent. Thru Beccaria we have learned many lessons and adopted some of his theories which are still in use today. You have to let the people know what the crimes are and the punishment for those crimes in order to try and deter people from committing those crimes.
4. Which Positivist School theorist do you think contributed the most to the advancement of criminological theory? Explain why you choose that particular theorist over the other Positivist School theorist of the time? To me Lombroso was the most influential theorist in the positivist school theorist of the time. Even though he had some weird views which sound crazy today such as the slope of someone’s head or the size of their ears. I do agree with his four major categories. He is also the theorist that came up with crime of passion which I understand and the irresistible force that he speaks of. He thought of the social factors to go alone with crime also depending on the laws, structure of the government, church organization, sex, marriage and climate to name a few. Lombrosos also was the theorist who took the causes of crime away from sin and turned it over to science the same as we use today.
5. Explain both the consequences and benefits that the Positivist School brought to criminal justice reform.