Durkheim Flashcards
intro - thought
- Wanted to separate himself from the metaphysical positivism of Comte and Spencer
- Society = sui generis reality (reality unique to itself)
o Individual consciences have fused to form new reality that is better than its parts individually - ‘social facts’ = able to influence individual part of collective
- collective effervescence = moments when individuals come together in ritual
- project energy onto external symbol – power is determined by representation collective
- religion allows individual to represent to themselves society and their relationship to it
intro - primitive religion
- Located in a simply organised society
- Should not need prior religious explanation
- Need to dig deeper in order to understand the true value of their symbolic meaning
- Need an understanding of primitive religions before one can begin to evaluate the more modern, complex religions. History is important for identifying causes/development
Tend to be more homogeneous, not affected by outside world
intro - role of sociology
- The role of sociology is to ‘explain a present reality that is near to us and thus capable of affecting our ideas and actions’ (1)
intro - defining religion
- All religions possess an element of truth. Can rank according to power etc. but ultimately, ‘all are equally religious, just as all living beings are equally living beings’ (2)
- ‘Religion is an eminently social thing’ (9)
- ‘Religious representations are collective representations that express collective realities’ (9)
- Definition of religion should not arise from preconceptions but rather from reality itself
intro - role of history
- ‘As (religion) progresses historically, the causes that called it into existence… are seen no more except through a vast system of distorting interpretations’ (7)
o in studying primitive religion, we can more clearly see its causes - ‘The study I undertake is a way of taking up again the old problem of the origin of religions but under new conditions’ (7)
intro - ritual
- ‘At the foundation of all systems of beliefs and all cults, there must necessarily be a certain number of fundamental representations and modes of ritual conduct that… have the same objective meaning everywhere’ (4)
However… D recognises how this is difficult given the variation within a single religion
intro - a priori vs. a posteriori
- There has always been conflict between views of knowledge as a priori vs. a posteriori
o D argues that experience is not enough
o It is often thought that the superior/perfect reason is divine reason but this doesn’t meet scientific hypothesis - The conflict can be avoided if one adopts a social stance
o Categories of a priori/a posteriori can be viewed as ‘essentially collective representations’ (15)
♣ Depend on context
o Reason continues to have its ‘specific power’ (18) but links it to the observable and empirical world
intro - formation of collective representation
- Collective representations are created over time; ‘long generations have accumulated their experience and knowledge’ (15)
- Authority of society can be seen in the pressing of certain categories on us
o These categories cannot be literally defined. Most successfully expressed in terms of ‘artificial symbols’ (17) - To understand things that humans have not created ourselves, we must ‘look outside ourselves, observe history…’ (18)
book 1 ch1 - religion and the supernatural
- Often conceived that religion must be associated with the supernatural
o D argues that mystery is key aspect of REs e.g. Xianity but that this has not always been the case. E.g. 17th cent, RE was separated from all irrationality
o However… this analysis of RE is not seen in primitive religions.
o ‘It is the positive sciences that have gradually constructed this notion of a necessary order’ (26)
o ‘Religious conceptions aim above all to express and explain not what is exception and abnormal but what is constant and regular’ (26)
book 1 ch1 - religion and divinity
- Another characteristic associated with religion is divinity i.e. god(s)
o This excludes tribes etc. as well as major REs like Buddhism
o Divinisation of the Buddha is exclusive to Northern Buddhism. However, saint-like status of Buddha is different to divinity
o The Buddha is usually viewed as a man of supreme holiness, not divine.
o Role of Buddha was to reveal truth of salvation. Once this role was achieved, ‘he ceased to be a necessary factor in religious life’ (30)
o Many rites in religions are separate to belief in God e.g. Bible tells women to live in isolation during their period – what is the relation of this to Yahweh?
o Religion is broader than gods
book 1 ch1 - defining religion
- In order to define religion, it is essential to ‘characterise the elementary phenomena from which any religion results’ (33)
o Religious phenomena can be divided into beliefs and rites
♣ Beliefs = statements of opinion
♣ Rites = particular modes of action
o ‘Religion is not merely a single cult… but is made up of a system of cults that possess a certain autonomy’ (39) e.g. in Xianity there is CofE, RCC etc.
book 1 chi 1 - profane/sacred
o Absolute heterogeneity is enough to distinguish the sacred and the profane. They are ‘separate genera’ (36)
o Rites that transform an individual from profane to sacred show the complete opposition between the two worlds. In leaving the world of the profane, individuals are forced to engage with an extreme form of the sacred. E.g. monastic life
o ‘Sacred things are things protected and isolated by prohibitions; profane things are those things to which the prohibitions are applied and that must keep at a distance from what is sacred. Religious beliefs are those representations that express the nature of sacred things’ (38)
o it is when sacred things relate to eachother coherently that religions are formed. It is not formed through a single cause, but rather many parts joining together.
o ‘There is no religion… that does not acknowledge a plurality of sacred things’ (38) e.g. in Xianity, there is an acceptance of multiple doctrines e.g. Trinity, Virgin Birth etc.
book 1, ch 1 - religion and magic
- Both have rites/myths/beliefs
- However… with magic, ‘these are less developed, probably because, given its pursuit of technical and utilitarian ends, magic does not waste time in pure speculation’ (39)
- ‘There is something inherently anti-religious about the manoeuvers of the magician’ (41) they often denounce aspects of religion.
book 1 chi 1 - religion and the church
- ‘Even so-called private cults, like the domestic cult or a corporate cult, satisfy this condition: they are always celebrated by the group, the family or the corporation’ (41)
- Magic is not as unifying. More of a service/customer relationship than one of a Church, where people share a set of beliefs etc.
- However… if religion is associated with a Church, it excludes more personal beliefs/individual religions.
D’s response: ‘these individual cults are not distinct and autonomous religious systems but simply aspects of the religion common to the whole Church of which the individuals are part’ (43)
book 1 ch 1 - final definition of religion
o ‘A religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden – beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community called a Church, all those who adhere to them’ (44)
‘In showing that the idea of religion is inseparable from the idea of a Church, it conveys the notion that religion must be an eminently social thing’
