Applying Labelling Theory to Selected Short Stories by James T. Farrell

Afra S Alshiban

doi:10.7575/aiac.alls.v.9n.5p.143

Abstract

For decades, “societal reaction theory” or “labelling theory” has provided the most significant explanation for deviant behaviour, particularly in the case of juveniles. The theory argues that once a stigma is attached to an individual, an irreversible process occurs whereby the labelled individual begins to identify as deviant and to embark on a deviant career. Hence, rather than deter bad behaviour, stigmatisation and shaming serve only to amplify it. Although the labelling perspective is rooted in sociology, we find proponents of some version of labelling theory in other disciplines, even in literature. The present study posits that in the short stories of Irish-American writer James Thomas Farrell entitled “Big Jeff,” “The Fastest Runner on Sixty-First Street,” “Young Convicts,” and “The Scarecrow,” labelling processes emerge as essential elements in a comprehensive understanding of each story. All four stories are the least critically acknowledged works by the author even though they demonstrate the author’s remarkable talent for illuminating the social and psychological factors associated with deviant behaviour among juveniles.

Highlights

James Thomas Farrell (1904-1979) was a prolific writer, producing more than 250 short stories and 25 novels
The labelling perspective is rooted in sociology, we find proponents of some version of labelling theory in other disciplines, even in literature
The present study posits that in the short stories of Irish-American writer James Thomas Farrell entitled “Big Jeff,” “The Fastest Runner on Sixty-First Street,” “Young Convicts,” and “The Scarecrow,” labelling processes emerge as essential elements in a comprehensive understanding of each story

Summary

INTRODUCTION

James Thomas Farrell (1904-1979) was a prolific writer, producing more than 250 short stories and 25 novels. Farrell applauds realist writers who began to articulate the experience of ordinary people in American society, namely, immigrant groups, the poor, and the working class who “had hitherto received false and patronizing treatment, or no at‐ tention at all” (xix-xx) Farrell admired this approach to fic‐ tion and, in a manner similar to his predecessors, produced 250 realistic short stories that “embody scientific methods” and “treat character as the product of environment” (Farrell “Preface” xx). The shamed individuals in these three stories are teenage boys, while in “The Scarecrow” the consequences of branding a teenage girl suggest that even females are not exempt from the power of words These four short stories are Farrell’s least criti‐ cally acknowledged works, even though they demonstrate the author’s remarkable talent for illuminating the social and psychological factors related to juvenile deviant behaviour. Their self-concepts are based entirely on how others view them, thereby making these in‐ dividuals extremely vulnerable to labelling

The Labelling Perspective

CONCLUSION