The Lombrosian Myth in Criminology

Author(s): Alfred Lindesmith and Yale Levin

Source: American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 42, No. 5 (Mar., 1937), pp. 653-671
Published by: The University of Chicago Press
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THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

ALFRED LINDESMITH AND YALE LEVIN
ABSTRACT
The prevailingconceptionin this countryof Lombroso as the founderof scientific
criminologymay best be describedas a myth. Many earlierstudies of crimeclosely
parallel contemporarysociologicalstudies. An extensiveliteratureupon juvenile delinquency,professionalcrime,crimecausation, and otheraspects of criminologywas
alreadyin existencewhenLombrosobeganhis work. The use ofautobiographicaldocuments,the employmentof officialstatistics,the ecologicalapproach,and the studyof
the criminal"in the open," were understoodand applied long beforethe time of the
Italian school. From a sociological viewpoint,the advent of Lombroso representsa
retrogression
or an interludein the progressof criminologyratherthan a step in advance. The eclipse of the earlierwork may perhaps best be explained as a resultof
shiftingprestigevalues associated with the importationof social Darwinisminto the
social sciences,withthe growingpopularity,in the laterpart ofthe nineteenthcentury,
of psychiatricand otherindividualisticor biological theories,and with the isolation
of AmericancriminologyfromearlierEuropean developments.

Perhaps the most familiarstereotypein recentcriminological

estimateoftheplace ofLombrosoin the
is thetraditional
literature
history
ofthescientific
studyofcrimeand criminals.Almostunaniofmoderncriminology,'
mouslyhehasbeenspokenofas thefounder
and a hostofdevelopments,
suchas theindeterminate
sentence,
the
ElmiraReformatory,
probation,parole,the studyof juveniledelinquency,and even an interestin theproblemof vagrancy,have
been linkedwithhis name.2Writingsin the fieldof criminology
I See, e.g., P. A. Parsons, Crime and the Criminal (I904),
p. 75; H. E. Barnes,
"Criminology,"Encyclopediaof theSocial Sciences; G. W. Kirchwey,"Criminology,"
EncyclopaediaBritannica;and H. Mannheim,"Lombroso and Modern Criminology,"
SociologicalReview,XXVIII (I936), 32.
2
F. H. Wines in an article("The New Criminology,"CongressofArtsand Sciences,
information,
Vol. VII [St. Louis, I904]) wrote: "It has been said, but withoutsufficient
knownas the criminalanthropologists
thattheresearchesofthe schoolofcriminologists
werethe originaloccasion and motiveof the introductioninto Americancriminaljurisprudenceof the principleof the indeterminatesentence.There is no historicproofof,
The labors of the criminalanthropologistslogically lead to the
this assertion.....
acceptance and adoption of the indeterminatesentence,but they were little known,
and had made no seriousimpressionin Americaat the date of the creationof the Elmira institution."Probation and parole, of course,long antedate the appearance of
Lombroso's L'Uomo delinquentein I876. A parole, or "ticket-of-leavesystem,"was
establishedin England in I853, and probationwas practicedbeforethe middleof the
nineteenthcenturyin both England and the United States. See F. W. Grinell,"Probation as an OrthodoxCommonLaw Practicein MassachusettsPriorto the Statutory
653

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654

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

priorto Lombrosoare assumedto be of littleimportance

and are
usuallydismissed
witha barereference
to someoftheearlyreformers such as Howard (I 726-I832), Romilly(I757-I8I8), Beccaria
(I738-94),

Bentham (I748-I832),

and a few others. The develop-

mentsin England,France, Germany,Belgium,and otherConin thehalf-century

tinentalcountries
betweenI830 and i88o appear
to constitutea sort of no man's land in historicalcriminology,
judgingfromthe almostcompleteabsence of references
to that
period.3
There is no actual evidencein the voluminouscriminological
literatureof the nineteenth
century,beforeor afterthe timeof
Lombroso,whichjustifiesthe extravaganteulogiesthat are made
himthe
of himor thatgivesthe slightestgroundsforconsidering
firstto studycrimeor criminals
scientifically.
We shall attemptin
thispaperto indicatesomeofthefactorswhichmayaccountforthe
ofthisLombrosianmythand to givesome
originand dissemination
idea of the trueplace and significance
of the Italian school.We
shallalso have occasionto call attentionto valuableresearchwork
in variousphasesof criminology
thatpreduringthe half-century
cededthe appearanceof Lombrosianism,
i.e., to studiesthatwere
carriedon in thescientific
whichhad its originsprimarily
tradition
in the outstandingstudiesof A. M. Guerry(I802-66) and A. Quete-

let (I796-I874). It was this oldertraditionwhichgave the conof Lombrosothe evidenceand standardsin termsof
temporaries
whichhis theorieswerecriticizedand rejectedand whichenabled
System," MassachusettsLaw Quarterly(9I7),
pp. 59I-639,
and the report to the
EnglishParliamentby the SelectCommittee
on Criminaland DestituteJuveniles(I852),
p. 33, the testimonyof Matthew Davenport Hill. CourtneyKenny, in "The Death
ofLombroso,"makesthe claimthat "but forhis [Lombroso's]efforts
we shouldnotnow
be beginningto grapplewiththe problemsof vagrancy.
" (JournaloftheSocietyof
Comparative
Legislation,Vol. X [i909]). Studentsof social historyare familiarwithat
least fourcenturiesofinterestin the problemofvagrancy.See S. and B. Webb, English
Local Government:
EnglishPoor Law History,Part I: "The Old Poor Law" (I927),
chap. vi ("The Repressionof Vagrancy"),pp. 330-95.
3 Barnes (op. cit.) states: "In the active scientific
criminologyof today, the doctrinesof the classical school and of criminologists
priorto I9I0 have littlemorethan
historicalimport." Practicallyall recenttextbookshave moreor less uncriticallyaccepted this viewpoint.

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THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

655

of thatday to forman accurateestimateof the

soundscholarship
ofthe"newschool."4
significance
historical
studyofcrimeextendfarinto
therootsofthescientific
Although
as a modernsocialsciencemaybe said to have
thepast,criminology
oftheworks
in thei830's withthepublication
begunapproximately
of Queteletand A. M. Guerryon this subject.Their principal
crimestatisticswhichbeganto
was theofficial
sourceofinspiration
be publishedin a usefuland reliableformin mostEuropeancountries after France had set the standard with her Comptegenerale,

the
of Queteletin attracting
firstpublishedin I825. The influence
of thesciattentionof scholarsall overEuropeto thepossibilities
entificstudyof social phenomenaand to the studyof crimewas
on socialscienceis genofhis influence
enormous.The importance
hiswork
buthisstudiesinotherfieldsovershadow
erallyrecognized,
todayforhis
and as a resulthe is rarelymentioned
in criminology
whodevotedhisattention
inthisfield.A. M. Guerry,
pioneerefforts
exclusivelyto the study of crimeand of "moral statistics,"is
scarcelyless important.In I829 he and Balbi firstmade use of
crimerates,and in a famousvolumein
shadedmaps to represent
immethod,"as it was called,was further
I833 this"cartographic
provedand used as a basic techniquein isolatingcausal relationships as "ecological"maps are used today. This i833 work of
Guerry'sattractedimmediateattentionin France and in other
all over
and was taken as a model by criminologists
countries5
41n the absence of any adequate generaltreatiseon the historyof criminological
to theliteraturepriorto i882 willbe foundin A. von
references
theory,comprehensive
(3d ed., i882 [ist ed., i868; 2d ed., i874]). For the statistical
Oettingen,Moralstatistik
Vol. III
studies from i882 to i9i6 G. von Mayr's Statistikund Gesellschaftslehre,
(2d ed., I917), is excellent.In the later editionsof his L'Uomo delinquenteLombroso
quotes ratherextensivelyfromthis earlierliterature.A usefulsummarywill also be
foundin A. Bonger,Criminalityand EconomicConditions(Amer.ed., IgIo).
5 An evaluation of the workof Guerrywill be foundin von Oettingen,op. cit.,esp.
pages, on Guerry'si833
I (Ist ed., i868), I32 ff.An extensivereview,coveringfifteen
Review,XVIII, 353 ff.W. R. Gregin i835, in the
workwill be foundin the Westminster
stated: "The curious and novel inPreface to his Social StatisticsoftheNetherlands,
formationcontainedin the elaborate and profoundworkof M. Guerry,'Sur la Statistique Morale de la France,' and the startlingspeculationswhichare thereso carefully
developed suggestedto me the idea of undertakinga somewhatsimilarinvestigation
forsome othercountry,to ascertainhow farthe resultsto whichhe arrivedforFrance
I have givencoloured
wouldbear the test ofa morevariedand extendedinquiry.

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656

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

Europeduringthenextfewdecades. The "cartographic"

or "geoin hisEssai
introduced
graphical"methodofanalysiswhichGuerry
moralede la Francein I833 and laterelaboratedin
surla statistique
La statistique
hismonumental
moralede l'Angleterre
comparee
avecla
moralede la France,(i86o) becamean acceptedand comstatistique
and
montechniquein theanalysisof statisticaldata in criminology
in othersocial sciences.6Besides the use made of it by individual
......." OtherEnglishwriters-J.Fletcher,H.
maps, afterM. Guerry'sexample
and F. G. P. Neison-praisedGuerry's
earlywork,Fletcher
Mayhew,W. Redgrave,
oftkeMoral
workofits kindforthetime"(Summary
speakingofit as "thegreatest
a friendof Guerry's,
emStatistics
ofEnglandand Wales,I85o). Parent-Duchatelet,
study,
usingshadedmapsofParisandofFranceinhisremarkable
ployedhistechnique,
La Prostitution
dans la villede Paris (ist ed., I837). F. Robriquet,in Crimescommisdans

theshadedmaps
unitsin preparing
la Corse(i84I), usedmuchsmallergeographical
ofthe
analysisofcrimein Corsicaandin hiscomparison
whichhe usedin hiscareful
had a
islandwithFrancein respectto crimeratesforvarioustypesofcrimes.Guerry
in i85i and in the
ofhismapsofcrimeon displayat theLondonExposition
number
forsixstatistics
Englishcriminal
ofthem,representing
sameyearexhibited
eighteen
ofScience.
fortheAdvancement
teenyears,endingin i850,to theBritishAssociation
statisticalcongresses
of the international
specialsectionswere
In variousmeetings
etpratique
theorique
ofthismethod(seeM. Block,TraitM
devotedto theconsideration
wereinflude statistique
[i878], p. 67ff.).In BelgiumbothQueteletand Dtucp6tiaux
hismethod.
andemployed
encedbyGuerry
6 An outstanding
methodwas Georgevon Mayr
advocateof the geographical
in whoseencyclopedic
and sociologist,
statistician
Statistikund
(i84I-1925), German
thereis a detailedpracticaldiscussionof thismethodas wellas
Gesellschaftslehre
to the studiesin whichit was applied.See also
references
classified
bibliographical
zurStatistik
PolizeiimK. Bayern"in Beitrdge
des
Mayr's"Statistikdergerichtlichen
im Gesellschaftsleben
(i877). An excelK. Bayern(i867); and hisDie Gesetzmissigkeit
op.cit. Other
lentanalysisofearlystudiesofthiskindwillbe foundinvonOettingen,
methodin criminology
are
orapplications
ofthe"cartographic"
discussions
significant
outh6orie
del'6tude
desloisd'apreslesquelles
sedevelopP. A. Dufau,Traitsdestatistique
des
op. cit.;M. A. Malarce,"Moralit6comparee
pentlesfaitssociaux(I840); Fletcher,
Journal
dela societe
destatistique
diverses
partiesde la France,d'apresla criminalite,"
PrisonsofLondonandScenesfrom
de Paris (i86o), p. 6i; H. Mathew,TheCriminal
PrisonLife(i862), and Vol. IV, ThoseThatWillNotWork,of"LondonLabourand
in denscheinbar
willkiirtheLondonPoor" (i864); A. Wagner,Die Gesetzmdssigkeit
der Statistik(i864); A. Quetelet,
vomStandpunkte
lichenmenschlichen
Handlungen
im preussischen
Das Verbrechertum
sociale(2d ed., i869); H. von Valentini,
Physique
ofEnglandandWales,"Journalofthe
Staate(i869); L. Levi,"The JudicialStatistics
zurKriminalstatistik
Bemerkungen
Statistical
Society
ofLondon(i88o); H. Bennecke,
zur deutschen
Hessen (i869); G. Lindenberg,
des Grossherzogtum
"Bemerkungen
undStatistik,
N.S., XIX, 5I3 if.;
Jahrbiucher
far Nationalokonomie
Kriminalstatistik,"
in die Kriminalstatistik,"
statistisches
Allgemeines
H. von Scheel,"Zur Einfuhrung
Archiv,Part I (I890), p. 204; E. Levasseur,La Populationfranfaise,II (I89I),

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44I-72;

THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

657

scholars,it was also employedby thegovernments

ofseveralEuroin thepresentation
pean countries
ofofficial
criminalstatistics.7
It
is not always recognizedthat the "ecologicalapproach"to the
studyof crimeas it is carriedon todaymaybe fairlysaid to have
beenfirstemployedmorethana centuryago.
The methodofGuerry
was in a senseopposedto thatofQuetelet.
Whereasthe latteremphasizedthe regularity
of aggregateresults
and considered
theeffects
ofsex,age,climate,and other"natural"
causes,speakingoffreewillas a disturbing
element,Guerrybroke
up aggregateresultsin termsof smallgeographicalunitsand attemptedto accountforthevariationin crimeratesfromoneperiod
to thenextand fromonedistrict
to theotherin termsof an analysis
and of differences
in legislation.It was
ofgeneralsocial conditions
thisaspectofhismethodwhichno doubtled himto preferto call
it analyt,ique
moraleratherthan"socialphysics,"thetermemployed
by Quetelet.8
One of the problemswhichattractedmoreattentionthan any
otherwas thatof juveniledelinquency.The advancedconceptions
of educationofPestalozziand Froebelwereearlyappliedto young
and inthefirst
halfofthenineteenth
a movement
offenders,
century
forthereformation
ofjuveniledelinquents
sweptoverEuropeand
ofliterallyhundredsof reformatories
resultedin theestablishment
and agricultural
ofsocialresponsicoloniesbasedupona recognition
and the desireto reform
ratherthan
bilityfortheyoungoffender
to punish.Indeed,it is clearthatthereformatory
would
movement
nothave beenpossiblewithouttheseassumptions.In Englandthe
periodpriorto the I850's (whengovernment
supportextendedto
establishments
forthereformation
ofjuveniles)was oneofagitation
H. Joly,La Francecriminelle
Kriminalitat,"
(i8gi); Rettich,"Die wtirttembergische
p. 33I; and manyothers.
"Les Cartogrammes
a
7Von
Mayr,op. cit., pp. 7II and 72I; M. E. Cheysson,
teintesgraduees,"
Journalde la SocieteStatistiquede Paris (I887), pp. I28 ff.

Jahrbiickerfiir
Statistikund Landeskunde(I894),

8 See Michels, Die Sittlichkeit

in Ziffern?(I928); M. Halbwachs, La Thgoriede
l'hommemoyen,essai sur Queteletetla statistique
morale(I9I3); G. F. Knapp, "Quetelet

als Theoretiker"
Hildebrands
Jahrbuch
(I872), p. IOI. See also vonOettingen,
op.cit.;
in I, I34, of the firsteditionhe speaksof Guerry's
methodas "Ein Corrective
fur
Queteletsoben gertigte
Verwendung
des hommemoyenals Normund Typusdes
GutenundSchonen."

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658

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

of experiments
withmethodsof
by societies,of manyconferences,
of parliamentary
inquiries,and a great
treatingyoungoffenders,
takea practical
Not onlydid thisinterest
deal ofpublicdiscussion.9
in
attempts
turn,butitwas also clearlymanifested manytheoretical
to isolatethecausesofcrime,as, forexample,in theworkofHenry
Mayhew.
of the matterof
Considerableagreementas to the importance
basisforthesuccess
was,ofcourse,a necessary
juveniledelinquency
movement.The realizationof the importance
of the reformatory
9Confining
toEnglish
theprincipal
ourselves
entirely
publications,
parliamentary
and
areBorough
otherofficial
intotheproblems
ofjuveniledelinquency
inquiries
ofBirming-

ham,ReportoftheCommittee
ofJusticesAppointedTo ConsidertheTreatment
ofJuvenile
Offenders
(i8oo); London Committee
for theInvestigation
of theCauses of theAlarming
IncreaseofJuvenileDelinquencyin theMetropolis(i8i6); ReportfromtheSelectCommitteeon theCauses oftheIncrease of CriminalCommittments
and Convictions,
and intothe
on Criminal
StateofthePolice oftheMetropolis(I828); ThirdReportoftheCommissioners
Law (I834); Reportto theSecretaryof Statefor theHome Department
Relatingto Plans
fora PrisonforJuvenileOffenders
(I837); Middlesex,JulyQuarterSession,Reportofthe
Committee
AppointedTo ReportTheirSuggestions
for CheckingtheGrowthof Juvenile
Crimeand Promoting
theReformation
onJuvenile
ofJuvenileOffenders
(I846); Committee
Delinquency:ReporttothePrison BoardfortheCountyofAberdeen(I848); Reportofthe
SelectCommittee
oftheHouse ofLordsAppointedTo InquireintotheConditionofJuvenile
AppointedTo Examine intotheStateofJuveOfenders(I847); ReportoftheCommittee
nile Crimein Newcastleand Gateshead(I852); ReportsoftheSelectCommittee
on Criminal

See alsoSirJohnE. Wilmot,

andJuveniles
andDestitute
Children
(2 vols.,I852-53).
A

on theIncreaseof Crimein General,but

SecondLetterto theMagistratesof Warwickshire
MoreParticularlyofJuvenileDelinquency(I820);
JohnWigham,LettertotheCitizensof
Edinburghon theExpediencyof Establishinga House of Refugefor JuvenileOffenders
(I832); William Neale, JuvenileDelinquencyin Manchester,Its Causes and History
(I840); Sheriff
Watson,Crime and JuvenileDelinquencyin Aberdeenshire
(I847); E.
Rushton,
JuvenileDelinquency(I842); T. Paynterand Rev. SydneyTurner,Visit to
Mettray(I845); Walter Buchanan, Remarkson theCauses and State ofJuvenileCrime
in theMetropoliswithHintsfor Preventing
Its Increase (I846); B. Rotch, On Juvenile
Delinquency(I846); H. Barclay,
JuvenileDelinquency,Its Causes and Cure,bya County
NorthBritishReview,X (I849), I-38; T.
Magistrate(I848); "JuvenileCriminals,"
Beggs, An Inquiryinto theExtent and Causes of JuvenileDepravity(I849); "Young
Schools in
Criminals,"
EdinburghReview,XCIV (I85I); P. J. Murray,Reformatory
France and England (I854); "Reformatory
Schoolsin Franceand England,"Irish
Held at BirmingQuarterlyReview,IV (I854), 69I-792;
Reportsof Two Conferences
ham on JuvenileDelinquencyin I85I and 1853 (I854); JosephFletcher,
"Statistics

of theFarmSchoolSystemofthe Continent
and Its Applicability,
etc.,"Journalof
theStatisticalSociety,XV (I852), I-49; S. P. Day,JuvenileCrime,Its Causes, Character
ofJuvenile
andCure(i858); T. C. Kynnersky,
in Police
"On theTreatment
Offenders
forthePromotion
ofSocialScience
Courtsand PettySessions,"NationalAssociation
(i86o); Mayhew, op. cit.

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THE LOMBROSTANMYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

659

offamilyand communityinfluencesupon theyoungwas an essential

aspect of this movementand was stressedin practicallyall the extensiveliteratureon the subject. The followingstatementis representativeof many others,and serves to reveal the generalcharacter
of the conceptionsof juvenile delinquencyboth by the public and
by scholarsduringthe early part of the nineteenthcentury:
Juvenile
crimeis buttheblossomofa plantdeeplyrootedinoursocialinstiwouldbe muchthe
tutions;
andto dealwithit as a matterofseparategrowth
wereto cutoff
sameas ifa gardener,
wishing
to makehisgardenproductive,
someofthebudsfromthebad fruittrees,andimagine
thatthereby
he would
Juvenile
crimeonly
findtherestproducea goodcropofsuperior
description.
tellsthata largenumber
ofchildren
arewithout
thatcarefortheirwell-being,
to provide;
morallyand physically,
whichsocialarrangements
are intended
andweshallhavetolookdeep,andinquirelong,perhapsereweshalldiscover
wherethe firstfaultlies.Io

discussionand studyofjuvenile delinquency,

To thishalf-century
paralleled as we have said by a similarinterestin Continentalcountries,",Lombroso and his disciples added little or nothing. On the
contrary,it is probable that theirdoctrinescontributedmaterially
to the decline of interestin the problemsof juvenile delinquencyin
the later decades of the nineteenthcentury. The interruptionin
the interestof the study of juvenile delinquents which was ocof the Italian school
casioned by the militantbiological determinism
may account for a delusion among contemporarystudentsthat a
"scientific"interestin juvenile delinquency emerged for the first
time with the establishmentof the juvenile court in Chicago in
i899.I2
10

Delinquency
(I852),
TwoPrizeEssaysonJuvenile
M. Hill and C. Cornwallis,

p.

324.

in Colonies
ofthe Continental
development
summary
"I See, e.g.,E. Ducpetiaux's
zum
etc.(I857), and Fuchs,Die Vereins-Fursorge
6colesruralesetder4forme,
agricoles,
in ikrergeschichtlicken
desletzen
Entwicklung
wdhrend
Gefangene
furentlassene
Schutz
hundertJahre(i888).

I2 M. van Waters,
Courts"in
andJuvenile
Delinquency
in herarticleon "Juvenile
inlegal
formulation
comprehensive
claimsthatthefirst
Sciences,
theSocial
Encyclopediaof
oftheChicago
wasmadebya committee
termsoftheconceptofjuveniledelinquency
theconcept
in I899 and adds: "To attribute
to theearlylawmakers
Bar Association
based on the desireto producean ancient
is pureguesswork,
of childdelinquency
an almostinfora modern
Sucha pointofviewrepresents
development."
genealogy
Chapterin
W. Healy,in "The CloseofAnother
lackofhistorical
perspective.
credible
XIX [I935]), writes:"It is onlytwenty-five
yearsago
(MentalHygiene,
Criminology"

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66o

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

Anotheraspect of the crimeproblemwhichwas isolatedand

criminal.I3
studiedbeforeLombrosowas that of the professional
oras a trade,as distinct
The existence
ofcrimeas a socialinstitution
and therelafromcrimesof accidentor ofpassion,was recognized
tionshipsof the criminalgroupwithlegitimatesocietywere deThe historical
scribedand madethesubjectofmanyinvestigations.
continuity
of the traditionsand languageof thieves,prostitutes,
and the
was thetopicoffrequent
comment
receivers,
and swindlers
subjectofmanyexcellentstudies.
One ofthemostremarkable
worksin thisfieldwas thatofAveLallemant.In thisworkthe authortracesthe historicaldevelopmentofprofessional
crimeas an organicpartofthesocialstructure
in termsof thepersistence
of criminalargot.He findsthatcrime
and,
carriedon as a tradeby an integrated
as a social institution,
in thebreakupof
in a sense,organizedgroupofpersons,originated
slaveryand thefeudalorder.In a societyof serfsattachedto the
forthegrowthofa vast mobile
soiltherewas no roomorpossibility
crimeis
pauperand vagabondpopulationout ofwhichprofessional
bornandwherein
it concealsitself.As theold socialorderbrokeup,
thatsciencebeganan attackupontheproblem
ofthejuveniledelinquent
..... If the
ofthesocialorder,it maybe thatonlya
rootsofcrimeliefarbackin thefoundations
radicalchangecan bringanylargemeasureof cure.... untila bettersocialorder
exists,crimewillcontinueto flourish."
This was precisely
thepointof viewof the
ofstudents
before
generation
Lombroso.
in seinersocialI3 See especiallyAve-Lallemant'sfamousDas DeutscheGaunerthum
politischen,literarischenund linguistischien
Ausbildungzu seinen heutigenBestande

op. cit.Otherworksdealingwiththissubject
(4 vols.,I858-62), and vonOettingen,
in Newgate,"Fraser'sMagazine,
are"The Schoolmaster's
Experiences
Vols.V andVI
(I832); F. E. Vidocq,Les Voleurs(I837); H. A. Fregier,
Des Classes dangereusede la

populationdans les grandesvilles (I840); C. Rochlitz, Das Wesen und Treibender

Die Diebe in Berlin
Gauner,Diebe undBetriuger
Deutschlands(I846); C. W. Zimmerman,
(I847); "Thieves and Thieving,"CornhillMagazine, Vol. III (i86o); W. Crofton,
The ImmunityofHabitual Criminals(i86i); unsigned
article,"Professional
Thieves,"
"The Science
CornhillMagazine,Vol.VI (I862); H. Mayhew,
op. cit.;unsigned
article,

ofGarotting
andHousebreaking,"
Le Monde
Cornhill
Magazine,
VII; J.B. E. Laurent,
des voleurs,leur espritet leur langue (I862); Mary Carpenter,
Our Convicts(I864);
Le Mondedes coquins(I865); W. E. Wahlberg,
Dass Mass und der
Moreau-Christophe,

mittlere
Mensch im Strafrecht
in der
(I869) and Das Princip der Individualisierung
Strafrechtspfiege
(I878); Maxime DuCamp, Paris, ses organes,ses fonctionset sa vie,
in Berlin,"BlatterfiirGe"Das Verbrecherthum
etc.,III (6 vols.,I872); A. Ragotzky,
fangnisskunde(I872); H. Joly,Le Crime (i888); G. Moreau,Le Monde des prisons
Das Verbrecherthum
in Hamburg(I879); andmanyothers.
(I887); T. Schriider,

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THIE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

66i

and as the growthof townsand the practiceof almsgivingencouragedandmadepossiblea vagrantlifeon a largescale,thosewho

weredisinherited
by thevicissitudes
ofeconomicfortune
tookto the
road. In thissettingthe traditions
of thieves,brigands,burglars,
receiversof stolengoods, and of swindlersbegan to developas
by pointingout that in thisperiod
Ave-Lallemantdemonstrated
criminal
argotemergedforthefirsttime.He especiallyemphasized
the intimaterelationship
betweencrimeand prostitution
and discussedtheimportance
oftheroleplayedin theGermanunderworld
of
by Jewsand gipsies.'4He describedhowthecloserorganization
of a policesystem,caused
society,and especiallythe development
theprofessional
of
criminalto be absorbedintotheverystructure
tooperatebystealthanddecepthesocialorder,wherehe continued
in theanonymity
ofgreatcities.Crime
tion,concealing
hisidentity
was treatedby Avre-Lallemant
simplyas an aspect or productof
social organization.

The preoccupation
of the Lombrosianswithanatomyand with
Darwinianconceptsand theirassumptionthatthecausesof crime
wereto be foundin thenatureofthecriminaltaken"individually"
ratherthanin hisrelationsto othersled themto failentirely
to appreciatetheimportance
of the typeof historicalresearchdoneby
Ave-Lallemant
and others.WhatLombrosodid was to reversethe
methodof explanationthat had been currentsince the timeof
thatinstitutions
Guerryand Queteletand, insteadof maintaining
he heldthat
and traditions
thenatureof the criminal,
determined
thecharacterofinstitutions
thenatureof thecriminaldetermined
and traditions.Guerryin I833 wrote:
In each epoch thereare certaingeneralcauses by means of whichone atand the effectsof whichare noted everywhere.
temptsto explaineverything,
observedin the moralcharacter
Thus, in France,forexample,the differences
of peoples and in theirmodes of thought,have been successivelyattributed,
always accordingto the dominantideas of the time.... to the influenceof
to
and finallyrecently,to elementaryinstruction,
temperature,
nourishment,
14 Otherearlystudiesof thesetwogroupswhichrevealtheiruniquerelationship
Gaunerin Deutschland
(I840);
are A. F. Thiele,Die jiidischen
withthe underworld
in Europaund
Gauner(I850); A. F. Pott,Die Zigeuner
Die jiudischen
E. Tarnowsky,
desBoetde la dispersion
Asien(2 vols.,I844-45); and P. Bataillard,De 'apparition
TheElizabethan
enEurope(I844). See also therecentbookby A. V. Judges,
hkniens
(I930).
Underworld

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662

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

and to the influenceof politicallaw. Today

industry,to religiousinfluences,
.... thereis a tendencyto see in the moral characterof peoples nothing
but the variableeffectsof institutions.is

ofwhatwereperto a refutation
H. Mayhewdevotedhisefforts
haps threeof the majorcurrenttheoriesof crimecausationin his
day (ca. I850), namely,that crimewas due to poverty,to ignocrimeratesinthe
ofpopulation.By correlating
rance,andtodensity
in
variouscountiesofEnglandand Wales witheach ofthesefactors
turnhe cameto theconclusionthatnoneof themwas thecause of
crime.The theorywhichhe proposedin place of thesewas,briefly
crimewas the heartof theproblem,and
stated,thatprofessional
intowhichchildren
werebornand bred,so
thatit was a profession
trainingin the low neighborto speak,receivingtheirqualifying
hoodsof England'sgreatcitiesand in herprisonsand jails. His
and analysisof Londoncrimeand criminalshas probdescription
as
ably neverbeen surpassed.He conceivedthe juvenileoffender
evolvingin a naturalprocessof socialevolutionintotheadultprothief.In I863 JohnT. Burtcameto somewhatsimilarconfessional
clusionswhenhe said: "The greatproducingcause of habitual
criminals
is, I am persuaded,the criminalclassesalreadyexisting.
Beforethe NationalAssociationforthe
Crimeis reproductive."'6
ofSocial Sciencein thesameyearBurtmadethefollowPromotion
ingstatement:
partlyby thenumber
The amountofcrimein anylocalitywillbe determined,
ofpersonsin a populationpossessingless thanaveragementalcapacity,partly,
and especiallyin timesof distress,upon the amountof ignoranceamongthe
population,partlyby the extentto whichthe populationwas subjectedto the
pressureof poverty,and obviouslyby the accumulationof valuable property
in places whichmake it easily available forplunder.It has been pointedout
that all theseconditionsare foundcombinedin the highestdegreein townsof
thefirstmagnitude.'7

of
to describethe changesin the conceptions
It is unnecessary
ofLombrosiancrimecausationwhichoccurredundertheinfluence
ofmechanistic
and biologicaltheories
ism. The growing
prominence
in thespace
in thelaterdecadesofthecenturyare clearlyreflected
in the successive
whichvon Oettingendevotesto theirrefutation
I5
'7

I6 IrishFactsand Wakefield
Guerry,
op.cit.,p. 40.
Figures(I863).
"The Local CausesandAmount
ofCrimeinBirmingham,"
Proceedings,
p. 536.

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THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

663

editionsof his Moralstatistik.

In the secondeditionin I874 Lombrosois notmentioned
butthearguments
laterusedagainsthimare
alreadyessentially
sketched.In thethirdeditionin I882 theywere
simplyexpandedand specifically
appliedto the Italianschool.
In additionto thestatistical
methodsin thestudyofcrimewhich
wereemployed
fifty
yearsbeforeLombrosoby Guerryand Quetelet,
therewas also employed
in theearlynineteenth
a methodof
century
obtainingdata whichhas come to be called the methodof the
"participantobserver."We referby thistermto the use of lifeofcriminals
in theirunsuperhistorydocuments,
to theobservation
andtowhathasbeencalledthestudyofthecriminal
visedmoments,
"in theopen."
A bodyofobjectivedescriptive
materialon thelivesofcriminals
accumulated
duringthefirsthalfofthenineteenth
and becentury,
fore,and began to be emphasizedin the attemptto understand
and to isolatethecausesof crime.Testimonyby thieves
criminals
and criminals,
life-history
accountsbyoutdocuments,
sympathetic
withextensive
sideobservers
ofall
practicalcontactswithcriminals
of thisperiod.8 For centuriesthe
types aboundin the literature
i8Vidocq, e.g. (op. cit.),who was frequently
quotedby studentsof professional
a thief.The approachwhichwe havementioned
hereis eitherexcrime,washimself
all of thepreviously
or employed
plicitlyemphasized
by practically
citedworkson
crime.H. Mayhewsupplemented
his statisticalstudieswithnumerous
professional
documents.
E. Ducpetiaux,
as quotedby Rubbensin Edoutard
autobiographical
Ducofthesearchforthecausesofcrime,
petiaux([I922], chap.ix),speaking
said: "I1 faut
de la statistique
aux d6tailset aux cas speciaux
des g6n6ralit6s
criminelle
descendre
in Cornhill
pourchaquelocalite."A writer
Magazine(unsigned
article,op. cit.)wrote
as an artis onlyjustbeginning
to be understood
as follows:"Thievingconsidered
in
it is scarcely
thiscountry;
thirty
yearssincehonestmenturnedtheirattention
to the
to masterit ... . But obviouslycrimewillneverbe
subjectwitha determination
understood
cureduntilitsoriginandcareerarethoroughly
..... Wouldthattheprotellus aboutit. We
and candidly
fessional
thieveswouldbe inducedto comeforward
themuntiltheyexplainthemselves.
willneverfullyunderstand
Police,prisondisciponeachofthesesubjectsa conference
ofoldthieves,
line,fencemasters,
penalservitude,
wouldspeedilyteachthe publicmorethantheycan ever
earnestand outspoken,
forthepromotion
ofsocialscience,
learnfromassociations
parliamentary
committees,
and policereports.Believingthatwe
government
commissioners,
prisoninspectors
unlesswego amongthem,seethem
cannotunderstand
peopleofanyclassorcharacter
andhearwhattheyhaveto sayfor
in theiropenhoursofunreserved
communication,
I haveforsometimepastmadethemostofeveryopportunity
ofbecominug,
themselves
as a clergyman,
actsand habitsofprofessional
acquaintedwiththeorigin,
character,
thieves."

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664

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

criminalhad been regardedas a humanbeinglivingin society;

Lombroso'scontribution
seemsto have been to have inaugurated
the studyof the criminalas an animalor as a physicalorganism.
thattheweighing
and measurThe assumption
oftheLombrosians
was theonlyscientific
methodofstudying
criminals
ingofcriminals
ironicalinviewofthenotoriously
slipshodmethods
wasparticularly
and in viewoftheneglectof
ofthefatherofcriminal
anthropology
themovement
to thepresent
controlgroupswhichhas characterized
day.
in recentyearsby sociologists
of an interestin
The resumption
conversainformal
thecriminal
"in theopen"and through
studying
indocuments
is nowconsidered
an important
tionand life-history
methodin criminology-and
novationin the progressof scientific
rightlyso. It was preciselythisapproachof Lombroso'spredecesto condemnthe earlyworkas
sorswhichled the Italianpositivists
to
their
ownmethodsas theonlysciand conceive
"unscientific"19
ofsociological
theshiftin
research
entific
ones. Fromthestandpoint
inthesenseinwhichthis
emphasis"fromthecrimeto thecriminal,"
ofwhatoccurred,
was an unfortunate
phraseis an actualdescription
with
the
as an "individual"
the
in
for
criminal
error,
preoccupation
thesocialnatureofcrimeand collectiveresponsibility
thatfollowed,
in whichcrimearisesweregraduallylostsightof.
fortheconditions
who study
How did it comeabout thatpresent-day
sociologists
crimealong the same lines that it was studiedbeforeLombroso
shouldaccept the myththat priorto the writingsof the Italian
schoolnothingthat meritsattentionhad appeared?Althoughwe
have notbeenable to do morethansketcha fewof thesignificant
the voluof earlynineteenth-century
criminology,
developments
19 E. Laurent (L'Anthropologie
criminelle[I893], pp. 7-8), wrote: "Les questions
des criminelsa pr6occup6les penseursde tous les tempset de tous les pays. Mais on
s'6tait plut6t attache A l'etude sociologique du criminel;on s'etait peu preoccupedu
criminelpris individuellement."Schlapp and Smith (The New Criminology[I928],
p. 66) say the same thing. Moreover,the factthat the earlierliteratureand the earlier
statisticalstudieswereknownto the membersof the new school,as is demonstratedby
in theirbooks, makes it necessaryto assume that theydid not consider
the references
this previousworkscientific.H. Joly (Introductionto Le Crime)stated: "Enfin tout
un nouveau groupea voulu s'appropierl'etude du criminelet se la reserverpresquetout
entiere. I1 a sembleque nulle recherchene pouvait etrescientifiquesi l'anatomie et la
physiologien'y prenaientune part pr6pond6rante."

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THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

665

minousliterature
of that periodcontainsmanystudieswhichare
innosenseoutmoded.How didtheLombrosian
mythbecomeestablishedin criminology
andobliteratethisperiodofdevelopment
from
theattention
ofpresent-day
criminologists?
In attempting
to findan answerto this questionit shouldbe
notedthat the originl
of the mythcannotbe associatedwithany
generalacceptanceof Lombrosiantheoriesin any country.On the
contrary,
thetheoryoftheborncriminal
was receivedwitha storm
ofvigorousprotestand was so sharplycriticized
thatitsauthorhimselfsoonmodified
it and allowedsomeplace forsocialfactors.The
veryfact that oppositionto Lombrosianism
was so extensivein
Europeand thatLombroso'scontemporaries
wereable to evaluate
to demonhis theoriesas accuratelyas theydid is alone sufficient
stratethattheremusthavebeenin existence
in thisfieldoldertraditionsand standardsofresearch.Von Oettingen
expressedastonishmentthat theoriesas obviouslyunsoundand uncriticalas Lombroso'sshouldhave attractedany attentionat all afterfifty
years
ofdevelopment
in thescienceofcriminology.
He adds thatifsomethinglike Lombrosianism
had appearedfiftyyearsearlierin the
ofthescienceit wouldhave beeneasierto understand
infancy
how
it mighthave been taken seriously.20

Althoughdisciplesof the new schoolappearedimmediately

in
manyContinental
countries,
Lombrosiantheoriesmetwithsevere
criticism
fromthe majorityof scholarsand, in theiroriginalform,
soon ceasedto be takenseriously.21In England,thenewdoctrines
Von Oettingen,op. cit., P. 444.
In 1895 G. Bonjean (Enfantsr6volt6s
etparentscoupables:Etudesurla desorganizationde lafamilleetses cons6quences
sociale,p. 228) wrote: "Je ne veuxpas, quant a pres20

2I

entdiscuter
pluslongtemps
des doctrines
donttoutle mondeaujourd'hui(saufcertainesexalt6squi sontpeut-etre
euxaussides malades)reconnait
et les
et la faussete,

dangers." In

I903

Aschaffenberg
(Crimeand Its Repression[I9I3;

ist ed., I903]) stated

that"all ofLombroso's
to separatetheborncriminal
attempts
fromthenormalman
bybringing
himintoconnection,
partlywithatavistic,
partlywithpathological
states,
havecometo grief;
so hastheendeavor
tocharacterize
andanathecriminal
'clinically
tomically'"(p. ig9). Tardein I903 remarked:
of
"At thisverytimetheenthusiasm
theLombrosians
has cooledoffa greatdeal..... No onebelievesinthecriminal
type
anymore,excepting
Lombroso"(Penal Philosophy[trans.IgI2], p. 49 n.). G. Papillant
("Sur quelqueserreursde methodeen criminologie,"
XX
Revueanthropologique,
to the Lombrosian
school:"Elle
[191o], 323ff.)stated,speakingof the opposition
restevictorieuse
danslespayslespluscultiv6s,
commela France,I'Angleterre
etl'Alle-

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666

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

enjoyeda shortperiodof attentionbetweenI890, whenHavelock

Ellis introduced
themto Englishreaders,and I9I3 whenGoringis
generallycreditedwithhavingdemolishedthem.In the United
States,Lombrosoreceivedlittleattentionbeforethe i890's. The
literature
ofthenewschoolremained
untranslated
intoEnglishuntil
afterits theorieshad alreadybeen discredited
in Europe.22I,ombroso'stheories
havebeenviewedin thiscountry
as beingofpurely
historical
interestin the sensethat,althoughhe was creditedwith
havingemphasizedwhat was regardedas a promising
viewpoint,
his specific
theorieswererejected.
The myththatLombrosowas thefatherof criminology
appears
to have been primarily
an Americanproduct.As earlyas in the
ninetiesit was widelydisseminated
in thiscountryby physicians
and alienistswhowereattractedto theproblemas a resultof the
of the "new school."23This notion,
publicitygivento the efforts
magne." The fact that Lombroso alteredhis originalviews to take account of social
factorsimpliesthat the criticismthat was leveled at him and a perusal of some of the
literaturethat precededhim may have led him to realize that his originaltheorywas
untenable.Lombroso'slater discussionof social factorsin crimewas chaotic and confused,as J. van Kan pointed out, and was in no sense a contributionto criminology
de la criminalite
(see van Kan, Les Causes economiques
[I903], pp. 57-58).
" HamiltonD. Wey ("CriminalAnthropology,"ProceedingsoftheAnnual Congress
of theNational Prison Associationof theUnitedStates (Cincinnati,i8go), pp. 286-87.
"Little is beingdone in this countryin criminalanthropologythat can comparewith
the studies and researchesthat are being carriedon in Italy, France and Germany.
The studentunacquainted with the languages of these countriespursueshis studies
at a disadvantage owing to the paucity of literaturein English upon the subject.
Beyond resumesand briefreviewsthereare no translations."
23 Special factorsexistedin the United States whichencouragedthe popularityof
Lombrosian theoriesand of individualistictheoriesgenerallyand contributedmateriallyto the acceptance and continuanceof the myth. The popularityof economic
and politicalindividualismand the romanticidealismconnectedwithideas of"equality
of opportunity"providedfertilesoil for the importationof Italian criminalanthropology. The importanceattached to instinctsin human behavior throughthe influence ofsuch menas WilliamJames,E. Thorndike,and W. MacDougall, and the introduction of Binet-Simonintelligencetests and the subsequentI.Q. fad were othersignificantinfluences.The early publicationsof M. Parmelee (The PrinciplesofAnthropologyand Sociologyin TheirRelationto CriminalProcedure[igo8]) and WilliamHealy
(The Individual Delinquent[Boston, I9I5]) also served to help maintain the popularity of biological, hereditary,and psychiatricviewpoints.The publicitygiven to
Lombrosianismby the AmericanInstituteof CriminalLaw and Criminology(founded
in I909) and the translationsof foreignworksponsoredby this organizationmay also
be mentioned.

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THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

667

whichwas no doubtderivedfroma misunderstanding

oftheclaims
ofthecriminal
anthropologists
unthemselves,
wentcomparatively
in thiscountry,
challenged
probablybecauseoftheabsencehereof
anybodyof theoretical
or traditionof researchcompaknowledge
rable to that whichhad developedin Europe afterGuerryand
Quetelet.The absenceof reliablecentrallycollectedcriminalstatisticswas no doubtan important
factorinretarding
thisbranchof
studyin theUnitedStates. The publications
ofEuropeancriminologistspriorto Lombrosohave remaineduntranslated
intoEnglish
to thisday,and this,alongwiththevaguecharacter
oftheinformationthatreachedhereindirectly
concerning
thenewdevelopments,
the absenceof translations
of thewritings
of the criminalanthropologists,and especiallythe absenceof translations
of thewriting
oftheopponentsofLombroso,all contributed
to createtheimpressionamongAmericanstudentsthatthescientific
studyofcrimewas
beingundertaken
forthe firsttime.Europeansocialscientists
who
devotedattention
to criminology
duringthefirstpartof thetwentiethcentury-as,e.g., G. Tarde, H. Joly,G. von Mayr,J. van
Kan, A. Bonger,and J. Lottin-did not acceptthisview,and all
give creditto Guerryand Queteletas thefounders
of criminology.
The Lombrosiansthemselves,as we have indicated,were fully
awareofpreviousworkin thefieldand onlyconsidered
themselves
thefirstto studycriminals
in themodified
scientifically
sensewhich
dependedupon the characterization
as "unscientific"
of all the
researchthathad precededthem.
sociological
The immediate
attention
attractedbyL' Uomodelinquente
was no
doubtdue to a numberoffactorsin theintellectual
lifeofthetimes
whichcausedtheacceptanceofLombrosianism
as a logicaldevelopmentof alreadyexistingtendenciesin the social sciences.Chief
amongthesewas thespreadofDarwinism.Afterthepublication
in
of
Darwin's
I859
Originof Species,Darwinianconceptsnot only
sweptthroughthe biologicalsciencesbut werealso appliedin a
wholesalemannerin the socialsciences-in anthropology,
political
science,and sociology.The ideasofLombroso,althoughtheywere
by no meansnew,werestatedin an extremeformwhichattracted
theattention
ofthosewhowerepreoccupied
withDarwinismandits
to otherfieldsof thought.
applications
In thesameyearthattheOriginofSpeciesappeared,an anthro-

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668

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

pologicalsocietywas foundedin Paris and the nextdecadeswitofinterest

inthisfield.Galtonand
nessedconsiderable
development
studiesand
Pearsonin Englandwereengagedin anthropometric
were improving
statisticalmethods.Medical science,psychiatry,
had madeconsiderable
and abnormalpsychology
advances.In genofthenaturalsciences
eral,it maybe saidthatan increasedprestige
ofa seriesofimportaand especiallyofbiologyled to thebeginning
the
or
the
other
of
fields
into
realmofthesocial
these
tionsfromone
of
the firstmajorimportation
sciences.Lombrosianism
represents
intocriminology.
thischaracter
The happyapplicationof such termsas "new" and "positive"
to the Lombrosiantheoriesno doubtalso was a factorin causing
century,
themto seemto fitintothe spiritof the late nineteenth
in science,and a
whena senseofnewness,ofunlimited
possibilities
of spiritseemedto prevail.It becamefashiongeneralexuberance
ableintheninetiesto usetheterm"new"and to applyit indiscrimiHavelockEllis,whointroduced
natelyin a widevarietyoffields.24
the"newschool"to Englishreadersin I890, was also a leaderinthe
and publishedhis The NewSpiritin the
"new" literary
movement
on therapidgrowthofthe
sameyear. WilliamJames,commenting
said
prestige
ofphysiological
psychology, thatthe"newpsychology"
did notmeritthename.25The presenceofa generalpopularsuperof
thatthephysicalfeatures
whichhas existedforcenturies,
stition,
mansomehowdirectly
reflect
his characterand thatcriminals
may
be distinguished
was no doubt
by obviousanatomicalpeculiarities
factorin causingLombrosiantheoriesto receive
also an important
considerable
popularattentionand publicity.26
The growthof the Lombrosianmythis to be accountedfor,
HolbrookJackson,The EighteenNineties,pp. 2I-22.
2 Talks to TeachersonPsychology
and toStudentson SomeofLife'sIdeals (I899), p. 6.
"We have been havingsomethingof a 'boom' in psychologyin this country.Laborahave been founded,and reviewsestablished.The air has been
toriesand professorships
fullof rumours."
26 B. DeQuiros (ModernTheoriesof Criminality,
p. 4) points out that the Lombrosians referredto this popular beliefas a corroborationof theirtheories.Outstanding
criminologists
priorto Lombroso,e.g., H. Mayhew and Ave-Lallemant,casually mention thispopularnotionas a discreditedsuperstitionunworthyof seriousscholarlyattention (see Mayhew, The CriminalPrisons of London,p. 4I3, and Ave-Lallemant,
Op.Cit.,p. 4 ofPart II).
24

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THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

669

basically,not so muchin termsof the acceptanceor rejectionof

theoriesormethodsofresearchas in termsofa changing
personnel.
AfterLombroso'sattemptto appropriate
criminology
to biologyand
medicinehad attractedwide publicityin Europe,physiciansand
wereattractedto theproblemin greaternumbersand
psychiatrists
gradually
displacedin publicattention
andprestigethemagistrates,
prisonauthorities,
lawyers,philanthropists,
journalists,
and social
scientistswho had previouslydominatedthe field,althoughit
shouldbe notedthatphysicalfactorsin crimehad beennotedand
studiedlongbeforeLombrosomade his abortiveattemptto make
themthe sole or the chiefcauses. The Lombrosianmytharose,
therefore,
as a resultofthe "seizureofpower,"so to speak,by the
medicalprofession.
Medical men compiledmedicalbibliographies
and traced the historyof criminology
as a branchof medicine
throughtheworksof Gall,Lavater,Pinel,Morel,Esquirol,Maudthe voluminoussociologicalliterature.Sociolosley,etc.,ignoring
of thehisgistshave uncritically
acceptedthismedicalconception
and theytoohaveignoredtheoldersociological
toryofcriminology,
tradition
of Guerryand Quetelet.
The wideattention
thatLombrosianism
attractedwas feltby the
to constitute
a threatto theveryexistence
opposition
and continuaof
tion sociological
wereseento
research.Its practicalimplications
a negationoftheveryprinciples
constitute
of
uponwhichcenturies
and reform
had beenbased.27The militant
legislation
efforts
propaof themovement,
as well as the resentment
gandisticorganization
it arousedby its doctrinaire
of the
views,led to the crystallization
27 Von Oettingenargued that the historyof human legislation,and especially of
criminallegislation,was a constantdemonstration
that the tendencytowardcrimedare
not be regardedas a natural forcein whichnothingcan be altered and that it is not
justifiableto regardcriminallaw as a meresort of physicaldefensein the strugglefor
existence(op. cit. [3d ed.], pp. 443 ff.). Tomel and Rullet, in Les Enfants en prison
(I892),
maintain that even if the criminaltype were establishedamong childrenit
could not be admittedinto the law as a principle.Concerningthe denial of the "responsibility"of criminals,Bonjean (op. cit., pp. 226-27) quotes Guillot as follows:
"En pretendants'appuyer sur l'observationphysiologiquela nouvelle ecole cherchea
ebranlerles bases sur lesquelles repose depuis des siecles la puissance de juger et de
punir. Le debat se place aujourd'hui sur se terrain.... Ne l'oublionspas et disonssans
craintea ceux des anthropologistes
qui s'obstineraienta l'ignorer,qu'ils feraientcertainementfausse route dans leurs recherchesparce qu'il n'y a pas de societe possible
sans la responsabilite."

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670

THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

opposition
into"schools"as well. This cleavagetookplace roughly
of themembers.The
alongthelinesof theprofessional
affiliations
of ensuingcontroversies
bitterness
was enhancedby the factthat
of a deeperantagonism
theoretical
disagreement
was symptomatic
betweencompetingprofessionalgroups representing
conflicting
practicalinterests
and fundamentally
different
orientations
toward
theworld.28
For morethana century
beforecriminalanthropology
cameinto
existencesociety'sresponsibility
forits criminalclasseshad been
and embodiedin thelegislation
ofall civilizedcountries.
recognized
offered
a convenient
It maybe thatthetheoryoftheborncriminal
rationalization
ofthefailureofpreventive
effort
and an escapefrom
theimplications
ofthedangerousdoctrinethatcrimeis an essential
productof our social organization.
It may well be that a public,
welcomedtheopwhichhad beennaggedforcenturies
by reformers,
to sloughoffits responsibilities
forthisvexingproblem.
portunity
In I854 an Englishwriter
statedsomeoftheproblems
confronting
criminologists
ofthatday as follows:
The treatment
and disposalofourcriminal
population
is a topicinvolving
someofthesubtlest
speculative,
andsomeoftheknottiest
practical
questions
in dealingwithit weareto
whichwecanbe calleduponto consider.Whether
oftheCommunity,
ortheinterests
oftheguilty
consider
onlythesafety
memina spiritofretribution,
weareto treatoffenders
bersofitlikewise,-whether
orofsimpleself-defence,-whether
orofbenevolence,
wearetoregardthemas
oras enemies
patients
tobe cured,oras victims
toberescued,
tobesuppressed,
is to be proportional
to theoffence,
or to thecircum-whetherpunishment
ortheobjectofdeterring
ofprisstancesoftheoffender,
others,-What
system
on discipline
is best,out ofso manyrecommended-whether
gaolsshouldbe
in spiteofeconomic
madeself-supporting
science,whether
theycan be made
sciencereallyforbidsthemto be madesuchsuch,and whether
economic
in whatmanner
to dealwithjuvenilecriminals,
in whatmanner
withthepeniwiththehardened-how
areweto secureto theprisoner
tent,inwhatmanner
onhisreleaseatleasta chanceofabandoning
onan
hisguilty
careerandentering
honestcourseoflife-Whether
to protecthimagainstthenecessity
ofrelapse
28
This same situationhas frequentlybeen noted today also. See, e.g., E. D. Monachesi,"Trends in Criminological
Researchin Italy," AmericanSociologicalReview,Vol.
I (June,I1936). "The ferventpre-occupationof the modernItalian criminologist
with
thebiologyofcrimemaybe explainedin partby thefactthatthemajorityof them are
doctorsof medicine." N. Cantor,in "Recent Tendenciesin CriminologicalResearch
in Germany,"ibid.,notes the same thingin Germany.

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THE LOMBROSIAN MYTH IN CRIMINOLOGY

67I

by throwing
as thicka veil as we can overhis unhappyantecedents,or to protect societyagainst the probabilityof his relapse by keepinghim constantly
undersurveillance-in what mannerwe are to preventour respectforindividual libertyfrominterfering
withthe measureswhichthe safetyof the communityrequires-in what mode we are to provideforthe health,cleanliness,
the safe custody,and the reformation
of the criminal,withoutrenderinghis
conditionmorecomfortable
thanthatof thehonesthardworking,
independent
labourer,-how to dispose of the thousandswhomwe used to transport,and
the thousandswhomwe are still annuallyliberatingand remandingback to
the alternativesof destitutionor of crime-how, in fine,we are to dispose of
existingcriminals,and how to cut offor diminishthe supplyof themin the
future?-These are some of the urgentquestionsto whichwe have to devise
a prompt,a satisfactory,
and a practicalreply.29

The failureto findsolutionsto theseproblemsno doubt preparedthe

wayfora newapproach.
The progressof scienceis oftenportrayedas a majesticand inofideasin a logicalsequenceofsuccessively
closer
evitableevolution
to the truth.We have shownthatthisconception
approximations
wherein
doesnotapplyto criminology
mythand fashionand social
conditions
have oftenexercisedan influence
quiteunrelatedto the
of
evidence.
orto theimplications
ofaccumulated
soundness theories
Oneofthesourcesofprotection
againstinvasionbyfads,andagainst
oftodayhas
ofwhichcriminology
theseextratheoretical
influences,
notavaileditself,is a soundappreciation
ofits ownpast.
INDIANA UNIVERSITY
AND
CHICAGO, ILL.
29 "The Management and Disposal of Our Criminal
Population," EdinburghReview,C (I854), 569.

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