Rakovsky came from a privileged background and applied his Marxist convictions to the study of crime in capitalist societies. He focused on the origins of vices and virtues and argued that categorically rejecting the belief that vices and virtues are naturally part of human nature is an essential prerequisite for a truly sound etiological theory of crime. Rakovsky considered the sociology of crime and said the root of criminal activity is that both positivist and sociological schools mistake derivative factors for primary ones in attempting to analyze crime causes. He recognized the relativity and variability of crime in societies whose rules vary over time and between circumstances. Criticisms of the Marxist thrust of Rakovsky's view of criminology are noted. 25 notes