Published in 1993, “Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member,” is a memoir written by Sanyika Shakur. Set in East Los Angeles during the late 70s, 80’s and early 90s, Shakur’s book illustrates the overwhelming amount of violence that occurs due to conflicts between rivalry gangs. As mentioned in the book, the majority of the conflict is not between the Crips and the Bloods but instead between Crips and other Crips. The book offers a unique difference from most other books about gang life because the author, also known as “Monster Kody” throughout most of the text, is a notorious member of the “Eight Trays Gangster Crips” and manages to work his way through the ranks to Original Gangster. Just graduating the sixth grade, Kody has
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However, the theory that is responsible for keeping the author from abandoning gang-life during his young adult years was the Labeling theory which I will explain later in the paper. Growing up Kody did not have a good relationship with his step father who favored his siblings and often took them on trips, leaving Kody behind with his mother. Kody later in the book is told that his biological father was Dick Bass, not Scott. One of the largest factors in the Social Learning Theory is differential association which is “the process through which individuals are exposed to definitions favorable and unfavorable to illegal behavior” (Lilly, Cullen, & Ball, 59). In other words, differential association proposes that individuals learn the different patterns of norms and values and attitudes towards certain illegal behavior through interaction with family members and peers. Because of differential association, individuals then propose their own definitions or meanings about what’s right and what’s wrong based on what is socially acceptable at the time. In addition to definitions, the idea of imitation also provides as a crucial factor in the Social Learning Theory. Imitation is pretty much the same as its meaning. Imitation occurs when an individual observes other people performing a certain behavior that results in the individuals imitating that behavior …show more content…
The Labeling Theory proposes that because society evaluates behavior based on the responses of other people, the label “criminal” is attached to anyone that has once committed a crime. In the book, Kody mentions, “Since then I have had an indelible scar on my mind stamped “criminal”… So by environment alone I came to look upon myself as a stone-cold criminal and nothing else” (Shakur, 138). The social construction of labeling those who commit crimes has a serious effect on their feelings towards themselves and their potential as a human being. If you are constantly being labeled as a criminal, then it only makes sense to adhere to those expectations instead of fighting society to prove that you are not just a criminal but
However, the theory that is responsible for keeping the author from abandoning gang-life during his young adult years was the Labeling theory which I will explain later in the paper. Growing up Kody did not have a good relationship with his step father who favored his siblings and often took them on trips, leaving Kody behind with his mother. Kody later in the book is told that his biological father was Dick Bass, not Scott. One of the largest factors in the Social Learning Theory is differential association which is “the process through which individuals are exposed to definitions favorable and unfavorable to illegal behavior” (Lilly, Cullen, & Ball, 59). In other words, differential association proposes that individuals learn the different patterns of norms and values and attitudes towards certain illegal behavior through interaction with family members and peers. Because of differential association, individuals then propose their own definitions or meanings about what’s right and what’s wrong based on what is socially acceptable at the time. In addition to definitions, the idea of imitation also provides as a crucial factor in the Social Learning Theory. Imitation is pretty much the same as its meaning. Imitation occurs when an individual observes other people performing a certain behavior that results in the individuals imitating that behavior …show more content…
The Labeling Theory proposes that because society evaluates behavior based on the responses of other people, the label “criminal” is attached to anyone that has once committed a crime. In the book, Kody mentions, “Since then I have had an indelible scar on my mind stamped “criminal”… So by environment alone I came to look upon myself as a stone-cold criminal and nothing else” (Shakur, 138). The social construction of labeling those who commit crimes has a serious effect on their feelings towards themselves and their potential as a human being. If you are constantly being labeled as a criminal, then it only makes sense to adhere to those expectations instead of fighting society to prove that you are not just a criminal but