There is a need to comprehend the causes of all these events because there have been numerous

significant crimes reported in Zimbabwe recently that are occurring in various societies.
According to the theory, there are various schools of thought in criminology that could aid in our
quest to understand why people commit crimes. The foundations of the classical and positivist
schools of criminology will be discussed by the author in this essay.

First off, according to White & Hanes (2008), the development of historical theory shows that
the classical and positivist schools of criminology represent the current paradigm for addressing
criminal behavior. The two important schools' principal goal is to develop adequate strategies for
halting the kinds of abnormal behavior that are deemed to be the most hazardous to society. Both
schools propose opposing philosophies to explain aberrant behavior, despite the fact that the
goals of both approaches were added to the causes of criminal behaviors. White and others
(2008). In respect to the theories put out by the proponents of each method, we will be discussing
the fundamental distinctions between the classical and positivist understandings of crime
throughout this essay.

In addition, the enlightenment period of the eighteenth century saw the birth of the classical
school of criminology (White et al., 2008). According to (Walters & Bradley, 2005), the advent
of this idea overshadowed the harsh punishments that took place in Europe since it recognized an
unanticipated civil transformation, therefore offering a crucial justification for the criminal code
in western cultures. According to Gottfredson & Hirschi, the primary goal of the classical
approach was to increase the number of unfair conflicts related to the criminal justice system
(1990). The introduction of classical ideas also compelled the rule of law and respect for human
dignity, thus criminals were no longer subject to retribution without first being found guilty by a
court of law (Walters et al., 2005).

Together with renowned thinker Jeremy Bentham, Cesare Beccaria—often referred to as the
"father of classical theory"—was the legal reformer who started this judicial system in which all
members of the social order were granted equal rights. Burke, (2005). (2005). In his book "On
Crimes and Punishment," Beccaria outlined the importance of rationalizing and humanizing the
law in order to make justice more relatable (Beccaria, 1767).

Beccaria (1767) not only advocated for the elimination of judicial discretion but also noted that
the judiciary's elucidation of the law prompted discretion (Beccaria, 1767). Additionally,
utilitarianism, or "the greatest good to the greatest number," was developed by Jeremy Bentham,
another significant contributor to classical thought (Siegel, L. 2004, White et al., 2008).
According to this view, he added, legislation must seek to satisfy the vast majority of people in
society (White et al., 2008).

In contrast, positivist theories of crime were popularized in Europe during the eighteenth
century. According to Garofalo Gottfredson et al., the principal theorists of this school were
Cesare Lombroso, Raffaele, and Enrico Ferri (1990). According to White et al. (2008),
positivism emerged in Italy during a time of social and political unrest. White and others (2008).
While the major goal of the positivist school was to use science to control criminological causes
of crime, the fundamental goal of classicism was to modify the legal system (Burke, 2005).
Because of this, positivist thinkers focused on the sociological, psychological, and biological
factors as the main contributors to criminal behavior (Walter et al., 2005). According to (White
et al., 2008), the father of positivist theory, Cesare Lombroso noted that criminals exhibit deviant
behavior because of their genetic make-up, establishing a biological distinction between
criminals and law-abiding citizens. Lombroso, who was influenced by Darwin's theory of
evolution, thought that criminals had physical traits that were indicative of an atavistic
individual, or someone with qualities resembling those of a person with primal heritage (Moyer,
2001).

Lombroso asserted as a result that social and ecological forces had no influence on criminal
behavior and that criminals were born rather than acquired (Walter al., 2005). The idea of the
"criminal mentality" is developed as a result of the second modification of positivism, which is
the mental/psychological effect. This modification is founded on the idea that human minds are
responsible for the movements of crime (Moyer, 2001). Furthermore, according to Gottfredson et
al., the sociological positivist notion makes clear that crime is often a socially assembled
phenomenon that needs to be managed in a particular culture (1990). Lombroso scholar Enrico
Ferri studied the social and economic factors that motivated criminals (Gottfredson et al., 1990).
His objectives were to improve social circumstances and protect people from nefarious predators
(White et al., 2008).

The idea that people have free will and can choose between various behaviors is one that was
incorporated into the theory of classicism. This idea supports a crucial belief that if someone is
free to choose their own actions, they must also acknowledge the importance of those decisions.
Walters and Bradley (2005) clarified that the free-will of an individual allows them to control the
benefits and risks of committing a crime (Walter al., 2005). Thus, criminals freely select to
commit a crime with full knowledge concerning the cost and benefits of their behaviour.
Rational choice theory is also an important principle of classicism that intensely highlights the
concept of free-will and human rationality (Gottfredson et