Essay on Durkheim and Marx Theories Applied to Drug Laws

All societies have rules and regulations as well as penalties for those who violate them. There are numerous theories about the philosophy behind these laws and punishments, and the reasons we implement them. A short analysis of two of these perspectives can shed light on the differences between the various ideas while illustrating that, in reality, each theory carries some validity. Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx’s perspectives on the law are significantly different. Durkheim’s view is based upon the belief that a society’s legal system reflects the values of society as a whole, while Marx’s view is based upon the belief that laws reflect a continuing conflict between the classes. An examanation of how these two perspectives perceive†¦show more content†¦David Garland agrees with this and writes, â€Å"penal measures are shaped not just by patterns of criminality-- themselves linked to the conditions of life of marginal groups and their relation to other classes-- but primarily by governmental perceptions of the poor as a social problem and the preferred strategies for their treatment (page 134).† In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, drug use became a major concern for most Americans. As the War on Drugs and â€Å"Just Say No† campaign were being thrust into the spotlight by the government and media, the public became more aware of the scope of drug use and abuse in this country. The federal and states’ governments quickly responded by creating and implementing more harsh and punitive punishments for drug offenses. Most of these laws have either remained unchanged or become stricter in the years since then. According to the Durkheimian perspective, the public sees drug use as an unacceptable behavior and recognizes it as a threat to morality and values. As such, drug users must be punished in order to restore societal harmony and deter future offenses. The increasingly punitive reaction to drug use in the 1980’s can be seen as a reaction to the public’s increasing perception that drugs are a threat to the moral fabric of society. By inflicting severe punishment on drug offenders, the community is satisfied with the knowledge that drug addicts are paying forShow MoreRelatedDurkheim And Marx s Theory Of Sociology1722 Words   |  7 PagesDuring the industrialization period Marx and then Durkheim began to apply their sociological theories to explain how societies function. Durkheim and Marx approached sociology from very different perspectives. Durkheim argued that the purpose of sociology is to study how the societal norms and social facts affect people on the individual level. 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