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Essay / Works and Understanding of Emile Durkheim The Concept of Functionalism
Emile Durkheim was a functionalist and believed that a society functions on the basis of several components within a particular society. Emile Durkheim, applying functionalism, described solidarity as “a community bond in traditional societies in which people share beliefs and values and carry out common activities” (Carl 12). Like functionalism, conflict theory also refers to a kind of bond that is akin to solidarity; Karl Marx, a conflict theorist, said people would likely bond once they developed a sense of class consciousness. Finally, symbolic interactionism uses the theory that certain groups bond together because of the symbols of their society, such as a flag or their language. Thus, the three sociological paradigms are related to the extent that connections exist in each of them on the basis of certain concepts. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay It is important for a sociologist to use the “sociological imagination” so that they can see the situation from a sociological point of view rather than from an individual point of view. . Sociological imagination refers to the ability to have “a collective understanding of social issues” (Solis-Gadea). For example, if a sociologist wanted to conduct a study on a group of wealthy individuals within a society, he would do well to examine what sociological factors contributed to the group's wealth. It must not be interested in individuals and leave aside the sociological components. Failing to use the sociological imagination, the sociologist can only understand the wealth of individuals biographically. If he does not appeal to the sociological imagination, the sociologist would reach individual and non-sociological conclusions. A symbolic interactionist would likely discourage the use of negative symbols when referring to the homeless population. This would be discouraged because if we refer to homeless people with negative labels such as "alcoholics", "drug addicts", "lazy" or "dirty", then they are less likely to be able to escape the homeless environment. shelter and progress. in social class. This would therefore have a rather negative and devastating impact on them. Since they are, like everyone else (according to symbolic interactionism theory), influenced by their societal symbols, they are likely to associate with those particular symbols. I appreciate Emile Durkheim's theories on suicide. In general, he theorized that two social forces influenced suicide: solidarity and social control (Carl 7). Whether the solidarity one feels towards one's society is insufficient or too strong, suicide may be more likely to occur. Regarding social control, when there is little hope for the future or when social instability is rampant, the likelihood of suicide also increases. Considering the theories, suicide is a crucial issue because it may be related to the impact of a certain society (or its forces) on influencing an individual to commit suicide. To me, it is very sad to think that someone would commit suicide because of the influence society has had on them. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get Custom Paper Essay Concerning the legalization of drugs, such a law has both manifest and latent functions. In my opinion, the obvious functions are the increase of income, through taxation, and the 13).