In 2013, Steven F. Messner and Richard Rosenfeld published an article entitled A Society Organized for Crime in the fifth edition of Crime and the American Dream. Their article examines the development of the American Dream and how it affected society and crime. They examine aspects such as the nature and level of criminal violence, fear of crime, punishment, the dark side of the American dream, and anomie theory. Through their research and analysis, they believe that to fully understand the nature and level of crime in our society, we must look at the defining characteristics of our society, especially as it relates to the cultural imagination. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Messner and Rosenfeld use their article to examine and explain how the American dream has created a more crime-prone society (Messner and Rosenfled, 2013, p.3). They give a brief introduction on specific white collar crime with Bernie Madoff, then discuss the current situation our society is in regarding the nature of crime and how we perceive crime (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 1). The authors then delve into the development of the American Dream and how it has changed our society (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 7). They discuss the Great Depression, World War II, the 2008 economic recession, and the presence of the American dream in the present day (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 8). In their analysis of the American Dream (and its dark side), Messner and Rosenfeld discuss many aspects of the economy in the United States (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 9). They discuss things like monetary success, noneconomic roles, economic inequality, and universalism (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 8). The two then use anomie theory to explain how these economic aspects of the American dream influence and produce crime in our society (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 12). They end their research paper with “unfinished business”; the work that must be done to address the high crime issues in our country (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 15). The organization of Messner and Rosenfeld's article is very well structured. It totals about 15 pages and is easy to read due to the way it is divided up. The sections are clear and easy to understand, and the subheadings briefly and accurately describe what is discussed in those sections (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 4). However, there are some subheadings that do not follow the previous formatting, so it is difficult to understand whether those sections are truly subsections, or something different (Messnr and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 8). Additionally, some sections are larger than others and can be a bit confusing to understand given the large amount of information (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 7). If the subsections were broken down into their main ideas and points, while still keeping the information, what Messner and Rosenfeld are trying to express would be much easier to understand. Overall, the organization was done well, and with small changes to make it cohesive, it would improve greatly. The style of the article is quite traditional and contains only text. It fits well as a research paper and/or informational article, but doesn't go much beyond that. Although the text is good and the information is useful and makes sense, some additions can be made that would improve the overall purpose of the article. Just like the LA Times article American Dream Can Lead to Crime, published 26 years before the articleby Messner and Rosenfeld, heavy work can lose a reader (Simon, 1987, p. 1). While text is important, and it's okay for it to be heavy, there should be additional elements in a piece to fit the times and to make the content more understandable. For example, in 2015, Vox did an interview article with Senator.Cory Booker on the current criminal justice system (because of how our society works) is destroying the American dream (Lopez, 2015, p. 1) . Although the aim of the article was slightly different from that of Messner and Rosenfeld, it had a similar undertone: “this is our society, this is how our society influences crime and punishment, and this is how these methods they are harming our society” (Lopez, 2015, p.1). The style of the Vox article is very engaging; not only is it well structured, but it incorporates a variety of different media (video, photos and graphics) that engage the reader and make the information understandable in a more modern way. If Messner and Rosenfeld had included some kind of visual element, such as infographics when discussing economic inequality, their content would have been more interesting and better understood (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 10). The overall effectiveness of this item is rather generic. It does its job by making a point and/or statement, outlining the problem from pre-development to the present day, and uses strong research and evidence to support the statement. Therefore, by simply reading the article, you can gain a basic understanding of the issue and point, but there isn't much depth after that. In a similar 2007 Harvard Business School article, many visual data elements were included in the research (Tella and Dubra, 2007, p. 1568). Tella and Dubra's article focuses on crime and punishment as it relates to the American Dream and their work is extremely data-driven (Tella and Dubra, 2007, p. 1564). Even though their work is abstract and complex to the average person, the inclusion of visual data and equations makes their work much more effective in expressing their claims and issues, and is overall more effective in creating change. If Messner and Rosenfeld included elements like these, perhaps when discussing the vices and virtues of the American dream or the “unfinished business” that exists, their argument might be more effective for the average reader or student (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. . 14). The topic in this article is covered very well. It is identified early, explained clearly and examined in a way that is understandable and respectful to those affected. The article does a great job explaining the topic in appropriate detail, providing prior background information to explain the cause, how the topic plays out in today's world and affects our society, and how the future may be affected by the unfinished business regarding this topic. The topic, its problems and explanations are also strongly supported by credible evidence and sources covering similar information. Everything Messner and Rosenfeld discuss in their article is relevant to their argument about the American Dream society, it lays the foundation for crime to occur and increase (Messner and Rosenfeld, 2013, p. 1). The public appeal for Messner and Rosenfeld's article is also quite generic. For a research paper, it is aimed at students, teachers and researchers who would be the primary readers. However, by the time it was published and in an effort to spread their message and research, Messner and Rosenfeld could have done more to make the piece more appealing to a wider audience than just members of the academic community. For example, the Criminal website publishes podcasts.