Text 1. The Concept of Crime

Crime denotes behaviour essentially harmful to a majority of citizens liv­ing in society and has been controlled or prohibited by the existing criminal law. The criminal law is a set of rules, codified by government, that express the norms, goals, and values of a majority of society. Violation of these rules results in state-administered sanctions. Consequently, the criminal law has a social con­trol function – to restrain those who violate the law.

Some scholars believe that the law and therefore the concept of crime is influ­enced by people who hold social power and use it to mold the law to reflect their way of thinking. For example, various groups have tried to influence laws regu­lating the possession of handguns, the use of drugs and alcohol, and the avail­ability of abortions. These moral entrepreneurs use their economic, social, and political influence to impose their definition of right and wrong on the rest of the population. According to this view, the criminal law is a flexible instrument that may change according to the desire of powerful individuals and groups who use it to reflect their views of right and wrong.

Another vision, called the conflict view, is that the criminal law is an instrument of control used by those who hold political and economic power to frustrate the aspirations of the lower classes, to maintain their own wealth, advance their own caus­es, and control the behaviour of those who oppose their ideas and values.

Despite these differences, there is general agreement that the criminal law defines crime, that its definition is constantly changing and evolving, that social forces mold the definition of crimes, and that the criminal law has a social control function. Therefore, the term crime is defined as follows:

Crime is a violation of social rules of conduct, interpreted and expressed by a written criminal code, created by people holding social and political power. Its content may be influenced by prevailing public sentiments, historically developed moral beliefs, and the need to protect public safety. Individuals who violate these rules may be subject to sanc­tions administered by state authority, which include social stigma and loss of status, free­dom, and, on occasion, their life.

Task 1.8. Read and translate Text 2: