Introduction…Émile Durkheim, born in the mid-1800s, was a sociologist and philosopher whose ideas are still relevant today. Durkheim combined the theories of ancient sociologists and philosophers, such as Marx and Comte, to develop his own theories. Many of these theories are still relevant today and can be used to analyze and explain factors in modern societies. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Theory… Like Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim believed in functional developmental essentialism. Furthermore, he believed that “in the social productions of their existence, men inevitably enter into indefinite relations…” (Marx [1859] 1992: 425). Thus, humans use their extrinsic relationships to work together within society and transform their relationships and resources into materialistic ideas and objects. However, even though Durkheim and Marx had similar theories on essentialism, their theories on human nature differed greatly. While Marx believed that "human nature is not a static thing, but varies historically and socially" (Ritzer, 2011: 158), Durkheim believed that humans are greatly influenced and moved by their personal interests, insatiable passions and their need for gratification (Ritzer). 2011). Durkheim asserts that there is a constant tension between selfish human nature and the altruistic social consciousness of morality that helps control selfish human nature (Ritzer 2011). Thus, Marx's theory of human nature states that human nature is not static, while Durkheim's theory of selfish and passionate human nature is natural and static. By combining his theories of essentialism and human nature, Durkheim created many of his own theories of society, including social theories. facts and the division of labor. Durkheim firmly believed that certain aspects of society could not be reduced to simple individuals; he believed that society should be considered as a whole (Ritzer 2011). Thus, he created his idea of ​​social facts. He specifies: “A social face is any way of acting, fixed or not, capable of exerting an external constraint on the individual; or again, any way of acting which is general in a given society, while existing in itself, independently of its individual manifestations” (Ritzer 2011: 184). Thus, social facts are seen at the societal level and can be studied and explained by other social facts. Although Durkheim created the idea of ​​both material and immaterial social facts, he focused heavily on the immaterial. Two of Durkheim's non-material social facts that relate to his ideas about human nature include morality and collective conscience (Ritzer 2011). Because Durkheim believed that human nature is motivated by self-interest and uncontrollable passions, he believed that “society needs a strong common morality” (Ritzer 2011: 189) in order to control these passions. Although he asserted that society as a whole could not become immoral, he believed that it risked losing its moral force "if the collective interest of society becomes nothing other than the sum of its personal interests." (Ritzer 2011: 189). It is therefore imperative that society values ​​morality so that human nature does not take precedence over the common good. Furthermore, Durkheim believed that society needs a collective conscience, which is important in societies for societies to have morals, values, and ideas. Collective consciousness is defined by Durkheim as “the set ofbeliefs and feelings common to average citizens of the same society form a determined system which has its own life” (Durkheim 1893/2011: 190). Durkheim believes that this consciousness is important in determining other social facts and creates a structure of common beliefs and values ​​in a society (Ritzer 2011). Along with Durkheim's idea of ​​social factors and human nature, he developed a theory of the division of labor. Durkheim's idea of ​​division of labor can be extended to dynamic density, mechanical solidarity, organic solidarity and how these theories are perceived in modern society. According to Durkheim, as the world evolves, population increases, therefore dynamic density increases. He defines dynamic density as “the number of people in a society and the amount of interactions that occur between them” (Ritzer 195). Furthermore, as the world has moved from primitive to modern societies, people have moved from mechanical to organic solidarity (Calhoun 2012). In the past, primitive societies were made up of a high collective consciousness and mechanical solidarity due to the fact that societies had similar jobs and interests. As time passed and population and dynamic density increased, societies developed organic solidarity, lower collective consciousness, and higher division of labor due to the fact that with more people, more ideas and skills (Calhoun 2012). So, in modern society with Due to lower collective consciousness, division of labor is important because it creates interdependencies between different people and maintains the cohesion of society. However, because the division of labor is an invariant theory, it must follow a specific path to be successful. If societies change too quickly, or if external factors interrupt, anomie occurs and does not allow society to function properly (Calhoun 2012). Analysis… Durkheim's theories and ideas, or lack thereof, can be linked to modern educational problems. , race and class. In an article titled “Decline of the Black Community,” Elijah Anderson states that in the past, black communities were segregated and had their own doctors, lawyers, schools, barbershops, and every other aspect of society. He argues that many of these factors do not exist in today's society because we have become less segregated. However, racial segregation is still widespread in today's society. For example, schools in urban areas are completely unequal compared to schools in suburban areas. In “The Shame of the Nation: Restoring the Apartheid School in America,” Jonathon Kozol writes about the inequalities seen in New York area schools. Kozul spent considerable time visiting and researching New York City schools and surrounding suburbs to demonstrate the extent of inequalities observed among these schools (Kozol 2005). One of the biggest inequities between city schools and suburban schools is finances. First, New York City schools don't have enough money to improve their buildings or grounds. Buildings were observed in many schools to collapse (Kozol 2005). For example, in one school, “a stream of water flowed into one of the main stairwells on a rainy afternoon where green mold was growing” (Kozul 2005: 40-41) and one school primary school “was forced to order the building closed.” windows were not cleaned because the frames were rotten and the panes fell into the street (Kozol 2005.