1.)Rational choice and determinist theorists have very different ideas about what causes people to engage in criminal and deviant behaviors. Describe the main differences between the two.
- Rational choice focuses on how the individuals who commit crimes believe that the benifit from commiting the cirme outwieghts the punishment of doing it. While on the other hand, determinist theories beliee that the individual’s who commit these crimes engage in these behaviurs biologically. Not only that, but rational choice theroist focus alot on the idea of free will and how the individual should know the difference between criminal and non-criminal behaviours. Determinist rest their beliefs that the behavioural stimuli can be rationally structured within society to produce the lawbiding citizens.
2.)What is the goal of the pre-crime unit in Minority Report?
- The goal of the pre-crime unit in the Minority Report was to identify the crime the individual was supposed to commit and take them away so the people are unable to commit the crime before they did it. This unit has a lot to do with deterring and preventing crime by looking into the future. They were able to do this by visualizing crimes by receiving visions of the future.
3.)What assumption does the unit make concerning the cause of criminality? Consider how this might relate to deterministic theories of crime.
- The assumption that the unit makes concerning the cause of criminality is that no matter the choice of the individual it is set in fate to happen and that the individual has no free will or self control to fix it. This relates to determinism because their ideology’s focus of free will being an illusion and that it’s more governed by internal or external forces, which we have no control over. In other words, all the criminal behavior has a cause and that it is predictable, which we can see being used in the pre-crime unit and there assumptions on the cause of criminality.
4.)Does ‘free will’ play any part in the behaviors and actions of the characters in the film?
- The characters in the movie Minority Report have free will, but it cannot be used because once they talk about an individual commiting a crime in the future you are arrested and unable to make any choice yourself. In my opinion, this is great for deterring crime from happening but dosnt play along with free will very nicely. Even though these characters could use their free will and not commit the crime, the individual would be taken away and not able to make any decisions themselves.
5.)Consider the ethical implications of determinism as illustrated in Minority Report. For example, should people be arrested and convicted of crimes they have not committed, but who are genetically or psychologically disposed to do so?
- People shouldnt be arrested for crimes they have not commited and determinism talks about how people are biologically made to be a criminal which is wrong because people should be able to make their own decisions. The situation would be different if the individual has had a past of criminal behavior. Genetic and psychological factors should be taken into consideration because they may play a role in predisposing certain individuals to criminal behavior. That being said, if the individual hasnt commited a crime yet the arrest would be unjust.
6.) In what ways can “pre-crime” prediction be useful/beneficial to society? In what ways can it be harmful? Use examples from the film to explain
- Pre-crime predictions can be helpful if people are not taken away too quickly. If these pre-rimes are seen then the people who are guilty of these crimes should be watched and given the chance to make the right choice and not commit the crime. Pre-crime is also good to have when looking for a victim because you are able to see the whole crime play out. The minority report shows how it can be harmful to society because you are putting innocent people away even though they still have the chance to make the right decisions. Everyone has bad ideas and thoughts and have the ability to not act on them, and if your not given the chance to not act on them is that fair?
7.)Try to locate an example of society labeling and consequently punishing or targeting people viewed as belonging to a criminal/deviant group before they have done anything.
- Society usually puts a label on people of color and assumes they are more likley to commit crimes rather than white individuals. You can see this play out in our own prison systems.
