Charles Manson

Paper Summary:

This paper introduces, discusses and analyzes the topic of Charles Manson, one of the world's most notorious murderers. Specifically, the paper discusses how the various theoretical schools of crime causation would attempt to explain Charles Manson's criminal behavior. It begins with a history of his life and criminal activity and then discusses the various criminal theories, in relation to him.

From the Paper:

"Finally, the social learning theory may ultimately be the most useful in understanding what made Charles Manson into the deviant social being he became. This theory essentially states that crime is a learned deviant behavior, and Charlie certainly had someone to learn from - his mother. She went to prison for robbery when he was only five and the rest is history. He lived with very restrictive relatives after she want to prison, and throughout his life he desperately wanted to be with his mother, even though she made it clear she did not want him. He learned from his mother to rob and steal, and continued the pattern throughout his life. It is almost as if he was looking for her approval of him through emulating her own dysfunctional lifestyle. Charlie could have just as easily learned the strict, religious behavior of many of his relatives. That he chose to emulate the one person in his life who simply did not care for him is interesting, and it helps prove the social learning theory of criminology. He learned from his worst social influence, rather than his best social influences, and this seems to be the case with many criminals. They learn negativity early, and use these behaviors to survive for the rest of their lives."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bardsley, M. (2002). Charles Manson and the Manson Family. Retrieved from the Crime Library.com Web site: http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/notorious/manson/charlie_5.html 11 Aug. 2006.
• Bernstein, M. A. (1992). Bitter carnival: Ressentiment and the abject hero. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
• Calderon, M. (2005) Crime causation. Retrieved from the Anai Rhoads Web site: http://www.anairhoads.org/calderon/crimec.shtml 11 Aug. 2006.

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