Syllabus

I would fain have charity, that there is but one in this Assembly, that hath been guilty of Murder in the highest degree of it; yet I fear there are several that have Murdered in their hearts, and some who have been guilty of interpretive Murder.
          Rev. John Williams, Warnings to the Unclean (1699)
 
The general tendency of moral insanity is bad, whatever show of real feeling of humanity there may be in it. It is bad, in a religious view, because it tempts men to indulge their passions, under the false impression that God has so constituted them.
        Dr. John P. Gray, American Journal of Insanity (1858)

Certainly the idea that the state should frankly give up punishing people who transgress the law, and treat them as social problems rather than as sinners still sounds to most people like the wildest of anarchistic notions.
         Henry Weihofer, Insanity as a Defense in Criminal Law (1933)

Description

 This course will give students the opportunity to learn more about the ways in which Americans have thought about crime and insanity and how their ideas have changed over time. The 19th century witnessed a transformation in the understanding of the origins of criminal behavior in the United States. The earlier religious emphasis on the sinfulness of all mankind, which made even the murderer merely another sinner, gave way in large part to a religious belief in the inherent goodness of humankind. But if humans were naturally good, how are we to explain their evil actions?

The criminal might be a flawed specimen of humankind born lacking a healthy and sane mind. Relying in part upon studies done in Europe, American doctors, preachers, and lawyers debated whether insanity explained criminality over the century. Alternative theories were offered. Environment, heredity, and free will were all said to have determined the actions of the criminal. By the early 20th century, lawyers and doctors had largely succeeded in medicalizing criminality. Psychiatrists now treated criminals as patients; judges invoked hereditary eugenics in sentencing criminals. Science, not sin, had apparently become the preferred mode of explanation for the origins of crime. But was this a better explanation than what had come before?  

Notice that the short assignments are designed to help you in planning your essays. Make the most of these opportunities to try out your ideas and look ahead to the essay questions which you will find below. If you have the questions in mind as you read, your task will be that much easier especially since the last essay is due on the first exam day.

Grading

Due Dates and Formats

• Short Assignments: students are required to do 6 out of 8 short assignments. All short assignments are due by 12 noon on Wednesday  via email or in hardcopy at my office (not every week has a short assignment). No short assignment will be accepted late. Plan ahead. They are worth 2 points each, and I do give 0’s.
• Essays are due in class in hard copy. Essays will only be accepted late at the instructor's discretion, and only illness or hardship will be excused.

Participation: The Rules

• Students will bring the day’s readings to class. If you do not want to mark up your books with your observations and questions in the margins as an aid to discussion, invest in a large pack of multi-colored post-its to use instead. 
•  Every student is responsible for the success of discussion. The question to ponder and the writing assignments are just our starting point for thinking about the book. Be prepared to share your observations and questions.
• Students should respond to one another’s remarks instead of directing their comments to the Instructor.

Attendance

Students will be allowed 3 unexcused absences. Plan accordingly. Each further unexcused absence will result in a drop of one full letter for the final course grade. 

Academic Integrity

Any violation of the Academic Code of Honor will be treated severely, and may result in a failing grade for the class. Outside materials, even if they are properly cited, whether from the Web or elsewhere, should not be used and may result in a lower grade for assignments or essays.