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Essay / Analysis of the article by Steven F. Messner and Richard Rosenfeld
In 2013, Steven F. Messner and Richard Rosenfeld published an article entitled A Society Organized for Crime in the fifth edition of Crime and the American Dream. Their article examines the evolution of the American dream and its impact on society and crime. They examine such things as the nature and level of criminal violence, fear of crime, punishment, the dark side of the American dream, and the theory of anomie. Through their research and reviews, they believe that to fully understand the nature and level of crime in our society, we must examine the distinctive features of our society, particularly as they relate to the cultural imagination. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Messner and Rosenfeld use their article to examine and explain how the American Dream has created a more crime-prone society (Messner & Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 3). They give a brief introduction to white collar crime with Bernie Madoff and then discuss the current situation our society finds itself in regarding the nature of crime and how we view crime (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013 , p. 1). The authors then discuss the development of the American dream and how it has changed our society (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 7). They discuss the Great Depression, World War II, the 2008 economic recession, and the current presence of the American dream (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 8). In their analysis of the American dream (and its dark side), Messner and Rosenfeld discuss many aspects of the economy in the United States (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 9). They discuss topics such as monetary success, non-economic roles, economic inequality, and universalism (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 8). The two then use anomie theory to explain how these economic aspects of the American dream affect and produce crime in our society (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 12). They end their research article with “unfinished business”; the work that needs to be done to solve the problems associated with high crime in our country (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 15). The organization of Messner and Rosenfeld's article is very well presented. It's about 15 pages long and easy to read because of the way it's divided. The sections are clear and easy to understand, and the subheadings briefly and accurately describe what is discussed in these sections (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 4). However, some subtitles do not follow the previous formatting, so it is difficult to understand whether these sections are truly subtitles or something different (Messnr and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 8). Additionally, some sections are larger than others and can be a little confusing to understand given the large amount of information (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 7). If the subsections were broken down into main ideas and points, while still retaining their information, what Messner and Rosenfeld are trying to express would be much easier to understand. Overall, the organization was well done, and with small changes to ensure consistency it would improve significantly. The style of the article is quite traditional and contains only text. It works well as a research paper and/or informational article, but it doesn't go much further. Although the text is good and the information is useful and logical, additions could be made to improve the overall purpose of the article. Just like the LA Times article, AmericanDream can lead to crime, published 26 years before Messner and Rosenfeld's article, a work containing a lot of text can lose a reader (Simon, 1987, p. 1). Even though the text is important and it is normal for it to be heavy, there must be additional elements in a piece to make it fit the times and make the content more understandable. For example, in 2015, Vox published an interview with Senator Cory Booker about the current criminal justice system (due to the way our society operates) destroying the American dream (Lopez, 2015, p. 1). Although the aim of the article was slightly different from that of Messner and Rosenfeld, it had the same connotation: "this is our society, this is how our society affects crime and punishment, and this is how these methods harm our society » (Lopez, 2015, p.1). The style of the Vox article is very attractive; not only is it well presented, but it incorporates a variety of different media (video, photo and graphics) that engage the reader and make the information understandable in a more modern way. If Messner and Rosenfeld had included some type of visual element, such as infographics when discussing economic inequality, their content would have been more interesting and better understood (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 10). The overall effectiveness of this article. is quite generic. It does its job by making a point and/or statement, describing the problem from pre-development to the present, and uses research and hard evidence to support the claim. Therefore, just by reading the article one can gain a basic understanding of the issue and the point, but there is not much depth thereafter. In a similar 2007 Harvard Business School article, many visual data elements were included in the research (Tella and Dubra, 2007, p. 1568). Tella and Dubra's article focuses on crime and punishment as it relates to the American dream, and their work is extremely data-driven (Tella and Dubra, 2007, p. 1564). Even though their work is abstract and complex to the average person, the inclusion of visual data elements and equations makes their work much more effective in expressing their demands and issues, and is overall more effective in creating change. If Messner and Rosenfeld included elements like these, perhaps when discussing the vices and virtues of the American dream or "unfinished business," their argument might be more effective for the average reader or student (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. The subject of this article is very well covered. It is identified early, clearly explained and discussed in a way that is understandable and respectful to those affected by it. The article does an excellent job of explaining the topic in detail, giving previous background information to explain the cause, how the topic plays out in today's world and affects our society, and how the future may be affected by unfinished work on this topic. . The topic, its issues and its explanations are also strongly supported by credible evidence and sources dealing with similar information. Everything that Messner and Rosenfeld discuss in their article is relevant to their topic on the American Dream society which lays the foundation for crime and its growth (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 1). The public appeal of Messner and Rosenfeld's article is also quite generic. For a research article, it is aimed at students, teachers and researchers who would be the main readers. However, at the time of its publication and in an effort to spread their message and research, Messner and Rosenfeld could have done more to make.