Who has not heard the word deviance and automatically thought of a child, who intentionally disobeys his or her parents; or imagines a teenager, who skips class with his or her friends? However, deviance goes beyond deliberately disobeying authority, or acting inappropriately in accordance to an individual’s cultural standards. Deviance is a behavior or belief that varies among cultures and undergoes changes that, at times, lead to the adaptation of previous unacceptable norms. Furthermore, a person has to differentiate between formal deviance, which are actions that violate the law and are of criminal nature, and informal deviance that infringes on the norms put in place by society. In general, the public is informed about such discrepancies
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I was taught by my parents that disrespect, especially towards my elders and teachers, dishonesty and dressing inappropriately will result in unfavorable sanctions. Furthermore, inviting friends to the house or going to a friend’s house without prior consent, especially when no adult was present, was against the rules. Also a breach in curfew and listening to loud music that inconvenienced the neighbors was unacceptable. Later in live, my family and friends emphasized the guidelines of dating. For example, cheating or having multiple partners is not acceptable. In addition, a friend should not date a friend’s former partner. In the workplace, I learned that not greeting or talking back to customers even if they are rude is considered deviant behavior. Today, my perception of informal deviance consists of smoking, being intoxicated in public and around children, dressing inappropriately (Wal-Mart cases), disturbing neighbors by being loud and obnoxious, disrespecting a person and other cultures’ and subcultural norms and the original dating rules. All though, some perceptions have either been eliminated, expanded or altered, the foundation of my view that has been instilled from early age and over time has remained …show more content…
However, justice is in the eye of the beholder. While one part of society rages for the death penalty in one murder case; however, request one life sentence in other, questions about blind justice arises. If the courts would operate on a sentencing system that uniformly penalizes offenders based on the crime committed rather than taking into consideration not merely the crime, but also the social standard and race of the offender. In 2007, Lindsay Lohan was charged for possession of perihelia and driving under the influences after being involved in a car accident. Two months later, Lohan is taken into custody after harassing and perusing a lady in her vehicle while, once again, being under the influence, possession of cocaine and driving with a suspended license. After pleading guilty in August of that same year, Lohan spends 1 day in jail and receives 10 days of community service (Grossberg). However, according to California law, the penalty for a first time cocaine possession is a minimum of 1 year in jail and 1 to 3 years of probation (Shouse). Status surely seemed to be the lenient factor in the Lohan’s case. However, in order for punishment to be affective it has to be combined with the possibility for an inmate to better him or herself.
I was taught by my parents that disrespect, especially towards my elders and teachers, dishonesty and dressing inappropriately will result in unfavorable sanctions. Furthermore, inviting friends to the house or going to a friend’s house without prior consent, especially when no adult was present, was against the rules. Also a breach in curfew and listening to loud music that inconvenienced the neighbors was unacceptable. Later in live, my family and friends emphasized the guidelines of dating. For example, cheating or having multiple partners is not acceptable. In addition, a friend should not date a friend’s former partner. In the workplace, I learned that not greeting or talking back to customers even if they are rude is considered deviant behavior. Today, my perception of informal deviance consists of smoking, being intoxicated in public and around children, dressing inappropriately (Wal-Mart cases), disturbing neighbors by being loud and obnoxious, disrespecting a person and other cultures’ and subcultural norms and the original dating rules. All though, some perceptions have either been eliminated, expanded or altered, the foundation of my view that has been instilled from early age and over time has remained …show more content…
However, justice is in the eye of the beholder. While one part of society rages for the death penalty in one murder case; however, request one life sentence in other, questions about blind justice arises. If the courts would operate on a sentencing system that uniformly penalizes offenders based on the crime committed rather than taking into consideration not merely the crime, but also the social standard and race of the offender. In 2007, Lindsay Lohan was charged for possession of perihelia and driving under the influences after being involved in a car accident. Two months later, Lohan is taken into custody after harassing and perusing a lady in her vehicle while, once again, being under the influence, possession of cocaine and driving with a suspended license. After pleading guilty in August of that same year, Lohan spends 1 day in jail and receives 10 days of community service (Grossberg). However, according to California law, the penalty for a first time cocaine possession is a minimum of 1 year in jail and 1 to 3 years of probation (Shouse). Status surely seemed to be the lenient factor in the Lohan’s case. However, in order for punishment to be affective it has to be combined with the possibility for an inmate to better him or herself.