Anomie

Contribution of Emile Durkheim (bullet points) Religion Durkheim believed that god concept is collective creation and power that is used by groups to direct the behaviour of its members. The basic principles of religion and rituals is to keep solidarity in the society especially in the periods of conflict. Function of religion is not to worship the god but the society. Within division of labour Durkheim made clear distinction between mechanical and organic solidarity.

Mechanical solidarity is characterised in traditional societies with simple division of labour. Individuals are highly constrained by the values, norms and regulation of the society. When member deviates from this norms he might be most probably rejected by the group. Individualism is not supported ad degrees of freedom are few. Organic solidarity is common for contemporary societies where there is higher differentiation of labour. Differentiation of labour is happening in relation to population density.

More and more people are living in same area with similar activities. Tension is rising, and the only way to overcome these tensions is to have more specialised activities. Division of labour develops in relation to population density. Individuals are having their own specialities and are mutually dependent. Differentiated societies are creating unique individual. Individual has personal opinion, religion, freedom…. and there is clear line between them and society (private problems and public concerns).

The division of labour is not making only marked exchange relationship but the feeling of solidarity. Social solidarity consists of integration of individuals and regulation. Social solidarity is social fact that can be observed only by external indicators, like the law. Law tends to be repressive and restitutive. Conformity in mechanic society is held by repressive system, while conformity in organic societies is held by restituitive force. Two abnormal situations in organic societies is anomie and egoism.

Suicide He explained suicide in terms of the degree to which a person is joined into social life. At the low end of social unity, there is anomic suicide, in which people destroy themselves because social bonds die and life becomes meaningless to them. Then when people are tightly integrated and there is a threat to the social group, people may sacrifice themselves in order to protect the group. Anomic suicide also proved that suicide increases as society falls apart.

Section one: Explain Marx ’concept of alienation. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the two concepts of alienation and anomie and to show their similarities and differences. One of the most important Marx’ theories is the concept of ‘alienation’. By the concept of alienation Marx claimed that people are using their ability to control their life under the capitalistic conditions. Created in the middle of the 19th century, it is a form of dehumanization. Marx’ theory of alienation is represented in the book Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts.

For Marx, alienation depicts a ‘’socio-psychological condition describing the separation of individuals from their natural and social environments’’. (www. academia. edu) Marx typifies four main types of alienation. 1. Alienation of the worker from the product of his labor: ‘The worker places his life in the object; but now it no longer belongs to him, but to the object’ (1844b: 324); The worker cannot control the conditions in which he is working. 2. Alienation of the worker from the act of producing: ‘His labour is [… not voluntary, but forced; it is forced labor ‘ (1844b: 326); The worker becomes a servant of what he produces. The object is not in the worker’s control and it is not his production. 3. Alienation of the worker from himself, as a producer: ‘estranged labour [… ] tears away from him his species-life, his true species-objectivity’ (1844b: 329); The workers are alienated from themselves. Their work takes from their humanity because they cannot realise their true humanity in creating the object they produce. 4.

Alienation of the worker from other workers: ‘each man [… ] regards the other in accordance with the standard and the situation in which he as a worker finds himself’ (1844b: 330); The conditions of work also alienate the worker from other men. They are no longer a team of creative workers. Moreover, the conditions of their work put them in competition with each other. They should work faster and harder, they should produce more. They become an enemies rather than to be team. According to Marx, capitalism alienates people from their nature and humanity.

They cannot show their potential in the communication with the others, in the connection with what they produced and in this way they cannot show them as human beings. Section two: Explain Durkheim’s concept of ‘anomie’. The French sociologist Emile Durkheim introduced the concept of anomie in his book The Division of Labor in Society, published in 1893. The term anomie means social disorder and is also used by Durkheim in his studies about suicidal behavior – in 1897 in his study on Suicide.

Anomie is usually translated as normlessness, but it best understood as insufficient normative regulation. (www. brooklinsoc. org) The concept was explained as a condition where the activities of the members in a society are no longer controlled by a norms. It refers to a ‘breakdown of the social norms’. (www. criminology. fsu. edu) Anomie refers to an environmental state where society fails to exercise adequate regulation or constraint over the goals and desires of its individual members (Durkheim, 1951: 241—276).

Individuals sometimes experience alienation from values and group goals during times of fast change in the society. This leads to conflicts and dissatisfaction. Industrialization with the division of labor affiliated anomie. In the process of producing, which is repeated, workers are losing their sense to feel their role in the production. The anomic suicide is taking place when the individuals are not regulated sufficiently by the society. This kind of suicide is more likely to happen of there are times when the economy is fluctuating.

As one of the important functions of a social order Durkheim pointed the social solidarity: there is defined place for every individual in the world that was created and reinforced by the social values of morality, religion, and patriotism. His observation was that these strands of solidarity are stronger or weaker in different societies. But he also observed that there are some forces in the modern society that are opposite to these moral ‘strands of social cohesion’ (www. understandingsociety. blogspot. dk).

In his theory of suicide, he explains differences in suicide rates across societies as the result of different levels of solidarity and its opposite, anomie. Durkheim highlights the situation of “anomie” to refer to the circumstance of individuals whose relationship to the social whole is weak. ( www. understandingsociety. blogspot. dk) Section three: How the two concepts are alike or different? The two theories are exposed by the authors as a essential problem of modernity as moving to a industrial state in Durkheim’s view and moving to a capitalist state in Marx’s view.

Another important similarity between the two theories is that they both arose in the 19th century when analysing the nature of labour – Marx’s concept was based on the labour process and Durkheim’s was written with the division of labour in mind. From these topics, the authors are trying to explain a variable changes, which are taking place in the society. Marx’s concept of alienation is showing another kind of separation – separation of the person from his/her nature as a free producer and creator, and separation of the person from his/her natural sociality. www. brooklinsoc. org) Thus, the modern capitalistic society is destructive of true society. In comparison, Durkheim and Marx are diagnosing a similar feature of modernity. But in Marx is comparing the present with the future as a society, full of equal and free producers. On the other hand in Durkheim’s case there is an implicit contrast between a pre-modern world in which individuals have a well-defined social and moral place and the contemporary world in which these strands of solidarity are breaking down. www. brooklinsoc. org) But in each case the author is grappling with a deficiency in modernity – a lack of moral and social setting that gives the individual a basis for self-respect and sociable cooperation with others. Bibliography: Marx. Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts 1844 Durkheim. The Division of Labor in Society 1951 www. brooklinsoc. org www. understandingsociety. blogspot. dk www. academia. edu

Introduction to Sociology Performance Assessment

Task #1: Sociology & Suicide Amy M. Ehlert Northcentral Technical College Abstract In this paper, I introduce Emile Durkheim’s ideas of suicide and the four types. I also discuss the sociological perspectives of the variations in suicide rates that Durkheim’s theory is able to explain. Finally, in conclusion, I offer my own personal views on the topic of suicide and propose ways that society could prevent suicide. Emile Durkheim was a French sociologist who published one of many books, entitled, “Suicide”. In it, he showed the different suicide rates between Protestant and Catholic people. This book was published in 1897, so, it reflects his findings at that point in time.

Some of the theories that Durkheim established about suicide being at a higher rate include the following:

• Men than women
• Single than married
• Childless than with children
• Protestants than Catholics/Jews
• Soldiers than civilians
• Times of peace than in times of war
• Scandinavian countries
• Higher education level
• The four subtypes of suicide that Durkheim recognized were: egoistic, altruistic, anomic, and fatalistic.

Egoistic suicide resulted from a feeling of not belonging or having no sense of meaning. Altruistic was being overwhelmed by a society’s beliefs and they feel less important. Anomic was from a person’s basic lack of not knowing where they fit in. Finally, fatalistic suicide, which is the rarest, is when a person’s future or what they are passionate about are oppressed by harsh discipline. The longitudinal variation in Durkheim’s theory is pretty much constant in that during each decade, the rates stay about the same. They range from a low of 10. 6/100,000 in 1960 to a high of 12. 4/100,000 in 1990. The average rate remains around 11. 39/100,000. No matter the difference in integration, social ties, or freedom, the suicide rates remain about the same. Suicide rates are higher among college students because they tend to have more stress in their lives or more things to worry about. They have all new things to worry about and do not have the closeness of their parents to help them as they did before. Some occupations can increase suicide rates and they include dentists, artists, teachers, etc. The type of work the person does and if they are depended on by others for their work can push these people to suicide.

Single people tend to have higher suicide rates than married. When you are married, you are part of a functioning unit and dependent upon each other. Adding children into the mix does and can add stress but also makes one happier, in my opinion. Single people are more isolated and less likely to have such close bonds. As for those with advancing age, they just seem to have given up. They think they have lived their lives and what more can they do? The late Dr. Kevorkian tended a lot of assisted suicides requested mostly by elderly people. The median age of Dr. Kevorkian’s patients was 74. That really shows how the elderly just seem to want to give up and pass on. Among the black and white youth population, Durkheim showed it was more likely for white youngsters, especially those who were wealthy, to take their own lives. This seemed to be due to even though these white youths had more economic advantage, they were often socially isolated. However, black youth suicide is on the rise in our country. I read that this is due to the breakdown of the family and easier access to alcohol and drugs.

However, the biggest factor is the increase of the black middle class, which puts more stress on these kids from their new social surroundings. In conclusion, I believe a lot of suicides generally stem from a cry for help. In my past, I have had these types of thoughts and am currently on an anti-depressant. There should be more literature available, especially for our youth, so they can be thoroughly educated on suicide. From my own personal experience, most attempted suicides are a cry for help. These people want help but not in a condescending way. They don’t want to be made fun of or made to feel like crap for their feelings. They just want to be understood. At least that is how I always felt. I believe there should be more youth groups or places youngsters can go and get involved in a healthy manner. Even for those who feel isolated by the normal groups in schools like athletics, choir, etc. There should be a community center specializing in groups of different interests; that is not offered in a typical educational environment. So, overall, I propose more education on suicide, a better understanding of those who are suicidal or depressed, and a place for the community to help them, not just our youth but all of our society.

REFERENCE

1. Macionis, J. J. (2009).
2. Sociology (13th Ed. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Prentice Hall. Suicide (book). (n. d. ). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved Sept. 11, 2011, from http://en. Wikipedia. org/wiki/Suicide_(book). Randall, Vernellia R. (1993, 2008).
3. http://academic.udayton.edu/health/01status/suicide01.htm. Massango, Rataemane, and Motojesi (2008).
4. http://www.safpj.co.za/index.php/safpj/article/viewFile/1302/1305. Maris, Berman, Silverman, and Bongar, (2000).
5. The Comprehensive Textbook of Suicidology: Part II: Sociodemographic and Epidemiological Issues, p. 194-203. http://books. google. com/books? id=ZixoFAPnPMC&pg=PA202&lpg=PA202&dq#v=onepage&q&f=false. Physician-Assisted Suicide Advocate Dr. Jack Kevorkian to be released from prison. (May 27, 2007).
6. http://www. foxnews. com/story/0,2933,275712,00. html.