During the nineteenth century various attempts were made to deal with crime on a scientific basis. These attempts were chatachterized by a transition from legal focus and  punishment to the question of what is a crime, and especially what and who is the criminal - a degenerate body? A deviant soul? In the seminar we will examine the criminality of the 19th century - and its relevance to this day - from a number of perspectives. We will see how the arguments between the different criminlogical schools corresponded to social theories and discourses: social Darwinism, degeneration and decadence. We will examine how questions of sexuality and gender distinctions in the context of law and crime were expressed in the art and literature of the period in a way that popularized crimonology on the one hand, and on the other, encouraged changes in investigative practices and penal and judicial reforms.