Street Corner Society

Howard Becker's deviance theory is applicable to the case of Doc in William Whyte's Street Corner Society in terms of Doc's not only accepting the label of deviance but applying it to himself. As Schaefer and Lamm write, "labeling theory emphasizes how a person comes to be labeled as deviant or to accept that label. . . . Becker . . . summed it up with the statement: 'Deviant behavior is behavior that people so label'" (124). Doc is first labeled, in effect, as a Momma's boy, because of his neat dress and good manners, but primarily because others saw him in that way and referred to him in that way. However, Doc rebelled against the first label, a socially acceptable label in adult terms but not in the view of his peers. He lived in a tough environment which required him to either learn to fight or to submit to more aggressive boys. He became a fighter and later a gang leader because his older brother forced him to fight, and, when he found that he had the capacity to fight and win, he carried that talent into gang leadership.

The passage from Whyte's book in Doc's own words does not find Doc providing a label of deviance to himself, but several comments make clear that he understands his behavior to be deviant: "But I wasn't such a tough kid, Bill. I was always sorry after i walloped them. They had faith in me, Bill. That's why I had to do some of these things" (Whyte 4). Doc may be labeled s deviant, a gangster, a tough guy, a troublemaker, or a criminal by adults in town

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Category: Psychology - S