Durkheim’s Impact on Social Theory: Context, Cooperation, Collectives

Abstract

Sociology has a canon, and critiques have been leveled at this canon. This paper addresses both the critiques of the canon and its continuance by analyzing the lineage of classical social theory from Émile Durkheim to contemporary studies. While Durkheim’s impacts on social theory are numerous, this paper focuses in particular on his impact in understanding three categories of social phenomena: context, cooperation, and collectives. The alliteration of these three categories can serve as a mnemonic device in remembering how Durkheim’s scholarship contributed to contemporary subfields. In explaining each of these three categories, this paper: (a) summarizes ideas in contemporary scholarship that continue and advance upon Durkheim’s social theories; (b) situates contemporary scholarship within a few of Durkheim’s primary publications; and (c) identifies key terms that are regularly associated with this vein of Durkheim’s scholarship. The paper culminates in a current events assignment based upon a table that synthesizes contemporary topics, relevant subfields, primary sources, key terms, and related sources. A writing prompt also asks students to engaged with a compelling visual to understand a key theme in classical and contemporary scholarship: tensions between individual freedom and collective wellbeing.