An Austrian man known as Josef Fritzl placed his little girl Elisabeth captive within an underground section of the family house for twenty-four years, creating an international landscape in early on 2008. During the period of two decades, Elisabeth was consistently sexually and physically abused, fathering her seven children as well as one miscarriage. As a result, Fritzl was charged with incest, wrong imprisonment, enslavement, kidnapping, negligent homicide and coercion which resulted in life imprisonment. Through personal accounts and or interviews of the average person in question, it could be outlined that the Classical theory of criminology can be mainly used to underpin Mr Fritzl's motives and behavior towards the criminal offense itself.
The Classical Theory is a theory, which argues that individuals are essentially free willed, and can calculate the plan of action that he or she wishes to take. This idea is reinforced with a idea that humans were governed by self applied interest or hedonism, where a person would place themselves above others. Categorized as the 'pain-and-pleasure' basic principle, often individuals would commit crimes after they examined the expenses and benefits engaged, and only when it was beneficial towards them (Lilly, Cullen & Ball 2002). An expansion to the theory (classical theory) explores the amount that criminals will go through to reduce the potential risks to be apprehended, by considering the location, time, and the logicality than it. The allure of minimising pain could tempt individuals to commit crime, if they plan and put together their plan of action in a rational manner, thus labelled as the rational choice theory (McCormick & Claude 1983).
In respond to Fritzl's conviction, Josef provided a truthful confession to Austrian prosecutors in a seemingly needy try to justify what he previously done. This was then subsequently noted by the mass media and posted. As aforementioned, the traditional theory contends that folks possess the freedom of preference, thus, in reference to the event; Mr Fritzl experienced the capability to do as he wished, to either continue or refrain from his enslavement of Elisabeth. The implication that the classical theory holds on individuals is clear lower and concise, for if a person is not forced into an action then it is solely theirs to make. Fritzl accepted that 'I was really thinking about whether I will let her go or not. But I was not in a position to make that decision". This advocates that Classical Theory is play, for though Fritzl possessed the energy to 'let her go'; he didn't, highlighting his flexibility of preference in the matter.
Another facet of the Classical Theory is the pain and pleasure theory. This concept is based on offenders who seek to gain maximum pleasure, but inversely least pain, through either weighing up the expenses and benefits, and the severity of the abuse if caught. This notion of pain and pleasure builds on the assumption that folks have a selfish-nature, in support of put themselves first since it is advantageous to allow them to achieve this task. Fritzl commented that 'it was ideal for me to truly have a second proper family in the cellar', which shows his large disregard for anyone but himself, and that he would go to any size to gratify his 'wants'.
Mr Fritzl described that "The urge to have sex with Elisabeth was getting more powerful and stronger and that he was also" afraid of being imprisoned and of having my family and everyone out there find out my criminal offenses" (Marsh 2009). These quotes add weight to Mr Fritzl who desired to satisfy his erotic needs, by abusing his child, as horrific as it may have felt. Once Fritzl had started to assault Elisabeth, he had established his source of pleasure, and it is in light of the that releasing his little girl, would only bring pain to him emotionally or physically. He continued to state that "I used to be afraid of being arrested and of experiencing my children and everyone out there learn about my crime". This illustrates that Fritzl recognized the expenses and benefits associated with such an action, and thus knew that permitting his daughter go would bring about much pain to him either through the law, or alienation from family and friends. This indeed proved to be the truth as a year after Fritzl was convicted, he talked about that his inmates 'continually yelled at him', expressing "Satan, come on out - we will eliminate you. ", demonstrating the consequences to be caught that Fritzl had calculated, but desired to avoid through secrecy and clandestine methods of captivity.
The pain and pleasure theory is simple enough, however it leads on to the Rational Choice theory.
Rational Choice THEORY This can be further exemplified through Fritzl's affirmation, "I put in 6 years planning" before he executed his plan. He even went through the extent of buying 'a hinged door that weighed 500 kg', and having an pointless amount of electric doors to get to the cellar (8 in total). With this much detail involved in a crime, offenders may be more inclined to commit it if they weigh the risks involved,
The cellar of my house, by the end of the day, is my house.
On the other end of the spectrum, while a lot of Fritzl's confession can be discussed through the Classical theory and its sub theories, the positivism theory can also provide a plausible reason towards criminal rationale, by exposing the restrictions of the Classical Theory.
The positivism theory disputes that the reason why a offense is committed is due to three main aspects; natural, psychological and interpersonal. The concept of the positivism theory is placed heavily in the actual fact that an individual is either blessed to be this way, or influenced socially (Sigmund Freud 1986). Inside a psychiatric evaluation, Fritzl explained that 'I was born to rape and I placed myself again for a comparatively long time", illustrating that it was the biological facet of his creation that brought on him to look at such horrific wishes. In other words, the positivism theory delves into intrinsic mother nature of humans themselves, often highlighting certain foul characteristics or behaviour. In mention of this case, it is clear that Josef Fritzl bore a hedonistic lifestyle, which might have been inherent of his innate evil dynamics, thus making him 'delivered to rape'.
This scientific methodology does not consider social factors, somewhat that criminals are either created to be this way or not. Building on this approach, it is the psyche of a person which makes a criminal, who they are. Sigmund Freud proposed that criminal behavior is either the consequence of mental health problems or a weak conscience. Through Fritzl's words himself, he commented that he "always understood during the complete 24 years that what I was doing had not been right, that I have to have been crazy to do such a thing, yet it became a standard event to lead a second life in the basement of my home. Fritzl does indeed recognise the legalities of his actions and could differentiate between right and wrong. However, his moral compass became feeble, for he cannot think it is in himself to let Elisabeth go. Hence, it is clear that the positivism theory is in play.
A restriction of the Classical Theory is the fact that it generally does not look at the cultural standings of an individual, and the surroundings he or she is in. A offender may be affected to take action, however ultimately it is still their choice, plus they have the flexibility to do what they want. Hence, the Classical theory has its disadvantages in describing the motives behind individuals who have been afflicted socially. The social learning theory (Bandura 1977)
Fritzl confessed to his lawyer Rudof Mayer that 'I grew up in the Nazi times, and this meant the need to be managed and respect power'. Whether or not Fritzl rejected or accepted these views is mysterious, however growing up as a kid in such extreme times may have affected his views regarding decency and good behaviour negatively. Within the confession, Fritzl located heavy focus on the era upon which he was brought up in, and also the abuse he endured as a child. As expected, the views (power and control) of the Nazi's rubbed off on Fritzl for he admitted that 'It(home) belongs to me. It is my kingdom only I can enter. Fritzl gained pleasure from oppression and it is in light of this that he wanted to always be in control, no matter the expenses, similar to the Nazi's. Originally Fritzl had referred to his mother to be the best female on the globe" and "as strict as it was necessary" (Stewart 2008), however as the confession progressed, his view changed to one of contempt. He admitted that 'she used to beat me, hit me until I got resting in a pool of blood on the floor. It still left me being totally humiliated and weakened. My mom was a servant and she used to work hard all her life, I never had a kiss from her, I was never cuddled although I wanted it - I needed her to be good if you ask me. ' Simple fact or fiction, Fritzl's fractured romantic relationship with his mom would have influenced him both in the sense in physical form and mentally, demonstrating the high levels of discord within his family. This might have given rise to the 'beast' within him, thus reiterating the positivism theory at play.
Upon closer inspection, the emotional facet of the positivism theory unveils that often c
Looking at the subconscious facet of the positivism theory deeper, it c
Sigmund Freud suggested that criminal behaviour is either the result of mental health problems or a vulnerable conscience. Through Fritzl's words himself, he commented that he "always realized during the complete 24 years that what I was doing had not been right, that I have to have been crazy to do any such thing, yet it became a normal incident to lead another life in the basement of my home. This illuminates that Fritzl do indeed recognise the legalities of his actions and could identify between right and wrong through his conscience, however feeble it became, he still possessed one. Many criminals often switch themselves, in due to the utter guilt that overcomes them, and this only reinforces the role that conscience can play on an individual. Others however, dare not commit the crime because they instinctively understand the idea of what is wrong and what is right. Ergo, the idea of a weak conscience in the positivism theory will abide by Fitzl's view.
On the other side, the positivism theory also contends that rather than natural or psychological triggers, it is one's social standings that play the major role.
In conclusion, the classical theory, in conjunction with its sub-theories on criminology, definitely trust Fritzl's bank account on the activities that took place under his home. While this theory agreed with the majority of Fritzl's confession, it may also be seen so it bears it flaws and constraints, specifically with the omission of exterior factors like the biological and mental side to criminal activity. Certain folks are given birth to with an intrinsic mother nature to cause criminal offense, and therefore, the positivist theory can be described, to explain Fritzl's actions. Further to this, the interpersonal learning theory requires into consideration the sociable upbringing and environment for a person, which help bring to light the mysteries regarding Josef Fritzl's child years and criminal offense.
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ROBS SHIT
