Consensus Theory Vs Conflict Theory Essay

Conflict theory cannot be fully introduced without defining two views social theorists have argued about for many years. The first is the consensus perspective. Consensus theorists state that society has a consensus of values among it members. This perspective puts a lot of emphasis on the state stating that it is organized to protect the interests of the general public, and has the duty to intervene when groups have differing views. The state is the representative of the general public’s values and interests. The conflict perspective has a differing view. Conflict theorists argue that the state does not represent the values and interests of the general public, but simply represents the values and interests of the wealthy and powerful. These are the people that control the state, establish
The powerful and wealthy make laws in order to protect their wealth and power. Conflict theorists would point to our corrections system stating that the majority of poor inmates are a result of the wealthy creating laws that favor them. As a result, more poor people are placed in prison and white-collar crime is less of an issue. The wealthy and powerful are able to pursue their own interests because the law they created allows them to whereas the poor are punished when they seek their own interests because the wealthy and rich defined it as so. Conflict theories have been prevalent throughout history. The founder of criminology was Karl Marx (1818-1883). Marx was an economist as well as a social scientist. Marx actually did not say much about crime in his theory, but it has had a large effect on conflict criminology. Marx’s theory focused on what he called the bourgeoisies and the proletariat. The bourgeoisies are in reference to the wealthy and powerful of the conflict perspective. The bourgeoisies are business owners, property owners, owners of corporations, or owners of the means of production. The