Issue 1 - An Idealistic Anthropology: Criminological Theory and State Control in Tsarist and Soviet Russia

Abstract

This essay examines how the Russian and Soviet regimes weaponized criminological theory to navigate the tension between modernization and autocratic control. It traces a trajectory through three key phases: the pre-Lombrosian era (Orthodox/Classical ideals), Lombrosian biological determinism (late 19th century), and the post-1917 Marxist approach. Despite claims of progressivism, each phase served the common function of legitimizing state power by redefining criminality to suit contemporary political needs. Analysis of legal codes, debates, and penal practices reveals a consistent shift in the state's conceptualization of the ‘criminal,’ oscillating between theories of redemption, determinism, and social control. While Tsarist attempts to reconcile legal reform with autocracy largely failed, the Soviet regime cynically adapted Marxist ideology to pathologize dissent as ‘social danger,’ enabling unprecedented social penetration and control under the veneer of a scientific, progressive criminology. Ultimately, criminology in Russia was persistently subordinated to the political imperative of maintaining control amidst modernization efforts.