Abstract

DAVILA, Luis Felipe. The Yeast of Evil and the Absurd Mass: The Crowds in the Work of Gabriel Tarde. Novum Jus [online]. 2023, vol.17, n.1, pp.311-330.  Epub June 23, 2023. ISSN 1692-6013.  https://doi.org/10.14718/novumjus.2023.17.1.13.

This article collects partial research results on Gabriel Tarde (jurist, judge in Sarlat, France, criminologist, sociologist; 1843-1904), imitation, and crowd crimes. The objective is to explore the main categories used by the 19th-century French author and understand the general lines of his thought, and why, over a century after his death, his work is regaining interest in the field of global criminology, particularly in Latin America. His work has been translated and studied again with renewed interest, especially in Argentina, where his greatest scholars are found. The main findings of this work have to do with the actuality of some of his ideas, such as the imitability of crime, the rhizomatic nature of society, and the nature of crowds. The most relevant conclusion of this article is that beyond the language or metaphors used by the author (which can be anachronistic and reproduce certain symbolic violence), his work contains keys to understanding many current social phenomena, particularly the crimes committed by crowds and criminal inventions.

Keywords : Gabriel Tarde; crime; imitation; crowds; criminology; masses.

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