Short discussion of deviance Sex Page Drug Page Crimes of Power Deviance Deviance is a reaction to certain forms of behavior which violates widely held norms . Norms are expectations by a social audience about what constitutes appropriate behavior in a given social context. Nothing is inherently evil in itself - it takes the interactions of men and women to categorize an act as evil, deviant, unnatural or constituting a crime.
Norms are relative to time and place.
At one time, it was a serious criminal offence for homosexual contact to occur between consenting adults. Homosexuals are now protected from discrimination and mistreatment. Even killing is acceptable and legitimate as long as authoritative state agents have approved the use of force for the pursuit of institutional or political goals. Self-defense is a legal justification for killing another person. Deviance is created and sustained through human interaction which defines the parameters of unacceptable behavior.