The authors explain and evaluate the main principles and rules of criminal law by reference to the objectives of the law by society, providing a social context to the law rather than a mere analysis of the rules. They draw extensively on a wide range of materials beyond the strict confines of English law, from the fields of philosophy, criminology, and penology. They have attempted to use the law to extract and develop some fundamental ideas underlying the law. To reflect the rapid changes in criminal law, the authors substantially rewrote and updated earlier sections on: criminalization, punishment, recklessness, consent, insanity, intoxication, lack of age, attempt, aiding and abetting, nonfatal offenses against the person, manslaughter, causing death by dangerous driving, and theft. The book is divided into ten major sections: (1) Crime and Punishment; (2) The General Principles of Criminal Liability; (3) General Defenses; (4) Causation; (5) Inchoate Offenses; (6) Parties to Crime; (7) Nonfatal Offenses Against the Person; (8) Homicide; (9) Offenses Against Property; and (10) Towards a General Theory of Criminal Law. Tables, index, footnotes