Merton Model Of Social Deviance

According to sociologist Edwin Lemert, the majority of sociological theories for deviance fall under the concept of primary deviance. However, Lemert considered secondary deviance to be more important. Everyone is guilty of primary deviance. However, this does not mean that they perceive themselves to be a bad person. This is perception is where secondary deviance comes in. With secondary deviance, the individual, is labeled by the act of deviance that they committed, whether it is by themselves or by others. Eventually, this label is accepted by the individual, as a part of their identity. While primary deviance consists of an act that takes up a small amount of time in a person’s existence, secondary deviance is something that sticks with the individual for the long term. Potentially, this type of deviance can stick with an individual for the rest of their lives. There are two different theories that can compare and contrast how a concept such as secondary deviance can gain a foothold in an individual’s life. These two theories are the differential association theory and the control theory.

Most of the original rebellion was directed towards the British class structure. They wanted to express their disapproval of the structure that governed their country. In The Jam’s “Eton Rifles”, the band sarcastically attacks the upper class, calling them arrogant and preaching to them that rugby is the only thing making them strong (Punk 68). The Sex Pistols’ album “God Save The Queen” portrays the Queen of England with a safety pin through her nose on their cover. The reaction to this outburst of shocking rebellion from the mainstream society was a strong, displeased one. American writer Greil Marcus defined punk as, “…refusing the future society has planned for you.” Thousands of social misfits attempted just that. Through the many causes for this rebellious political expression: communism, anarchy, feminism, etc., the punks of England had a focus and a reason. It was this that made the “punk” a valid, yet undesired member of society, and the British public got to see this sociological change first hand (Chamberlain par.8). Although this movement was short lived, its impact was a phenomenon, and its effects were long- lasting, which distinguished this group from previous generations.

There are several theories, which aim to help explain the causes of deviant behavior, however, not all sociologists agree on the causes. There are two levels to look at when explaining causes of deviance, micro-level and macro-level, each level has a different focus. I think that all of the theories are helpful in explaining the causes of deviance, but I find the differential-association theory to be most insightful. Edwin Sutherland developed the differential-association theory in the 1930’s. The differential-association theory includes nine different propositions, which explain the causes of deviance. Differential association is defined as, “social interactions with deviant as opposed to conventional others”(601). This theory basically explains how deviant behavior can be learned from various interactions.

In order to understand the topic that is to be discussed in this essay, one must first understand two seemingly unrelated topics. Those topics are feminism and punk rock. These two social movements spawned the love child that has come to be known as the riot grrrl movement. The history of the riot grrrl movement is deep and intensely intertwined with themes of monumental social change, musical evolution, and the previously unseen all-encompassing nature that is unique to third wave feminism.

One of the major underlying conventions of punk music is that it tends to reject an association with the mainstream. Punk rock is an all-encompassing out of the ordinary form of music. It goes against mainstream ideals in every possible way, from its grungy sound to the off-putting lyrics and influential ethos. Anti-Flag’s lyrics, message and political/social influences are a perfect example of what the 21st century punk ethos is and means.

Punk is a subculture that has changed over time and continues to change today. It emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s and evolved into a variety of different types during this time. These four types of punk include hardcore, straightedge, Riot Grrrl, and emo. Each of them is very different from one another and brings many different characteristics to the punk community in general. When looking at information in the book Goths, Gamers, and Grrrls, the film Between Resistance and Community, and prior knowledge from class, there are several different aspects to be compared within the punk subculture. Evaluating these three things help to bring about a better understanding of what values are demonstrated in the film, the evolution of punk,

Within this essay I will discuss Widdicombe and Wooffitt’s suggestions made within their book ‘The Language of Youth Subcultures’ regarding resistance and will use the subculture example of punks to portray a clear conclusion. This book is about how different identities, both social and personal are established, maintained and managed within their everyday language. Widdicombe and Wooffitt seem to narrow in specifically on youth subcultures, particularly interviews with punks. We will look carefully at the language used by them to construct their identities and why they ‘resist’

Now sociologists, such as Robert K. Merton, have new insight into the theory that deviancy is caused by the society in which we live, not biology or body chemistry.

Philosophical analysis a broad range of perspectives on the developments in punk rock music, while rational arguing as We watch, observe and over time realize that much of it has become commercialized, undermining its original philosophy energy, angry, and passion of rebellion and alienation. In reviewing this you'll see how punk started from the underground sub-culture of punk roots and then followed them to see what happened when they went commercial.

The two sociological theories of deviance I chose to study are the functional theories and the interactionist theories. The functional theories views crime and deviance as a result of structural tensions and a lack of moral regulation (Giddens, Duneier and Appelbaum 172). A important concept of the functionalist view is that of anomie, this idea suggests that there are “…situation[s] in which social norms lose their hold over individual behavior” (Giddens, Duneier and Appelbaum 172). This view also suggests that deviance is necessary in modern society because it “…brings about change…” and sets boundaries “…between good and bad behaviors (Giddens, Duneier and Appelbaum 172)

During 1970s Britain, life was a picture of austerity and hardship for many members of the public. The country was facing the worst economic recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s and large numbers of the electorate were quickly beginning to grow tired of the failing policies being touted by both Labour and Conservative minority governments. The experience of Britain for many in the 1970s was one of drawn out decline and decay, the consensus politics of the 1960's was falling apart and Harold Macmillan’s notion of ‘You’ve never had it so good’ couldn’t have been further from the truth. It could be argued that the aforementioned factors played a role of importance when assessing the largely spontaneous emergence of the punk

A style of music and culture based around DIY and the garage band the punk movement grew out of a reaction against tendencies found in 1970’s popular music and culture. Particularly, punk was a rejection of disco music, ‘arena rock’, and a youth driven rejection of hippie culture. The beginning roots of punk can be traced back to late 1960’s and early 1970’s scene in New York City surrounding Andy Warhol’s Factory and its many members. This foundational influence is outlined in Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain’s text Please Kill Me, The Uncensored Oral History of Punk. In the early 70’s era of the visual artist Andy Warhol and the member of his studio titled The Factory had begun to shift mediums and began working in theatre, as well as managing

In the mid-1970s, a new genre of rock music called punk rock emerged. Rarely appreciated by anyone over the age of 30, the music shocked and offended most if not everyone with its very aggressive and provocative nature. It was less commercial than the popular music at the time, in fact the genre seemed to actively avoid becoming a part of the mainstream. The punk rock genre started in New York City in the mid-1970s and spread across the country and also into Great Britain. In this paper, I will be dealing with the punk rock that existed in America in the mid and late 1970s, not the punk music afterwards nor any of the punk rock that existed in Great Britain. I will also be focusing specifically on the music and ideology of

Punk has been a part of music for quite a while, it didn’t fully emerge until the mid-1970s. It was during this time that punk became a full-fledged movement after the world faced some hard times. To truly understand what forced punk to emerge, one must know the hardships people faced during that time period. The 70’s saw troubled economies across the globe. With the end of the post WWII economic boom and the start of the oil crisis several countries were faced with economic issues, these problems

During the 1970s, anarchy engulfed the minds of British youth because they felt that authority was denying their freedom with excessive rules and regulations. William O. Reichert the author of “Anarchism, Freedom, and Power” argues “Anarchist insists that the idea of human liberty, while it cannot be made an absolute, must be maintained as the highest of all human values. Freedom, that is to say is the essential characteristic of a fully developed humanity…Nevertheless it must not be lost sight of as the guiding star of all social science, for to be human is to be free.” This quote illustrates that experiencing life in total freedom is the philosophy that grounded anarchism and influenced the outbreak of the punk subculture. However, during