The Boys on Casey’s Corner

Abstract

In no field of sociological enquiry are generalisations more prevalent than in the analysis and description of the position of young people. Overall theories are produced to explain both their conventional and unconventional behaviour. And many different perspectives have been adopted as to the motivating factors behind this behaviour. Underlying these generalised theories has been a surprising lack of research into local situations. Little attention has been paid to local differences of tradition, economic organisation and neighbourhood composition in relation to young people. The result of this lack of research at a local level has been first that the tentative findings from one piece of research have been accorded a general validity often far outreaching their author’s original intentions. Secondly, young people have been seen to be reacting to general societal conditions rather than to the local situations through which these conditions are transmitted. These shortcomings in research are particularly evident in the case of those adolescents who occasionally become involved in activity which the wider society regards as delinquent.

Luke Street’s had a bad reputation for about eight years. Loads of families were moved down the West End. They put all the big families down here. And all the kids went off their fucking heads together.

Frankie¹