Test 2 Flashcards
(101 cards)
1
Q
Elementary Forms of Religious Life
A
Work of Emile Durkheim
* Sacred and Profane (lies in the division of)
* He examined the simplest, most “elementary” religious beliefs and practices among Indigenous Australians to understand the essence of religion as a social phenomenon.
- Elementary “basic”
- Based on human need
2
Q
Australian Aborigines – Arunta
A
- “primitive” society / religion
- He selected this group because he felt that their religious practices were representative of the most primitive (elementary) forms of religion.
- argued that complex societies were too large and too complicated to observe as a whole – yet small, simple society could serve as a good indicator – revealing social facts that exist in modern society
3
Q
Totemism – clan, symbol
A
- is a religious system in which certain things (plants or animals) come to be regarded as sacred – representative of the clan, or most primitive forms of the social organization of that religion.
- Durkheim believed it was the most basic form of religion
- Studied this among the indigenous Australian aboriginees
- A totem is an animal or other natural object that spiritually or symbolically represents a people and their common origin.
4
Q
Religion is a social product
A
- Society is the ‘soul’ of religion
- religion was fundamentally a social institution, reflecting the collective consciousness of society and reinforcing social bonds.
- Religion provides individuals with social control, cohesion, and purpose, as well as a unique means of communication.
- When individuals ascribe to a religion, they interact and reaffirm social norms.
- According to Durkheim, religion is eminently social. Socially constructed.
- Durkheim states that society is the ‘soul’ of religion (not the opposite) because religion is a social construct and depends on people creating religions.
5
Q
Sacred
A
- socially constructed through rituals that transform the moral power of society into religious symbols that bind individuals to the group.
- collective representations that are set apart from society
- transcends [go beyond] the monotony of everyday life
- Sacred world cannot exist/survive without the profane world
- There would be nothing to give the sacred life…have to have something to look at basically
- *What is ‘sacred’ is not universal – it shifts and changes based on the things that people agree is ‘sacred’ – so the definition of ‘sacred’ is socially constructed.
- Moves away from the everyday
6
Q
Profane
A
- includes the realm of routine experiences
- utilitarian, or practical and useful
- think of profane as the everyday life
- According to Durkheim, the sacred world cannot survive without the profane world to support it and give it life, and vice versa.
7
Q
Reaffirming participation
A
- the way individuals engage in collective rituals and ceremonies that reinforce their shared beliefs and social bonds. When people participate together in rituals, they renew their connection to the collective consciousness—the set of shared beliefs, values, and norms that unite a society.
8
Q
Beliefs
A
- “the representations which express the nature of sacred things and the relationships which they sustain” (Durkheim 1912)
9
Q
Rituals
A
- “the rules of conduct which prescribe how a man should comport himself in the presence of these sacred objects” (Durkheim 1912)
- reaffirm the meaning of the sacred by acknowledging their separateness from the profane.
10
Q
Church
A
- where individuals learn about the sacred and the beliefs associated with the faith, as they practice the rituals in community with one another
11
Q
Collective effervescence
A
- a community/society will come together and simultaneously communicate the same thought and participate in the same action. The event will cause a ‘collective effervescence’ which excites individuals and serves to unify the group.
- Community building
- Special properties agreed upon
- A unified system
12
Q
Suicidal rate statistics
A
- Men are more likely to commit suicide
- Suicide increased with age
- suicide rates are a social fact, influenced by societal forces rather than just personal choices. His study provides a framework for understanding how social structures and collective values impact individual behavior, emphasizing that suicide is a public health issue rooted in social environments, not merely individual psychology.
- Suicide rates express the ‘dynamic’ nature of social life or increased social exchange, socialization, “intensity” of social life
13
Q
Dynamic social life
A
- refers to the ways social structures, norms, and collective forces shape individuals’ lives, including how connected or isolated they feel within society
14
Q
What time of day does suicide happen more?
A
- Suicide happens more during the day because, as Durkheim writes “social life is most intense” (pg 68).
- that day favors suicide because this is the time of most active existence, when human relations cross and recross, when social life is most intense
15
Q
What type of weather (suicide)
A
- The latter depends on the SOCIAL CONDITIONS – not on the weather – but the intensity with which people engage.
16
Q
Protestants vs Catholics
A
Protestants = higher rate of suicide
- Protestant and Catholic denominations differ in their group structure. Protestantism is a more individualistic religion, Protestants also tended to be a more educated. Catholics can rely on a stronger community, which might keep up their life spirit, whereas Protestants are more individualized in their community formation – more likely to be inward in their coping.
- “The only essential difference between Catholicism and Protestantism is that the second permits free inquiry to a far greater degree than the first…”(112)
- Protestants have a higher rate of suicide
17
Q
Integration social force
A
- refers to how connected the individual feels to the group
18
Q
regulation social force
A
- refers to the social expectations placed on the individual in the group
- It is not just about ‘social’ life and ‘its intensity’ – the diversity (variance) of suicide rates can be considered along a ‘spectrum’ of INTEGRATION & REGULATION
19
Q
when does suicide occur
A
- If integration/regulation is too low or too high
- You can have ‘too much’ or ‘too little’ integration and regulation
20
Q
Egoistic suicide
A
- low integration
- Individual feels they are not part of society
- Individuals feel disconnected from morality, social values, and lack a sense of purpose
*For ex. someone who is unmarried (or older) - Egoistic suicide occurs when the individual is isolated and lacks social connection with others. Social disengagement is prominent.
- Person is alone or is a social outcast, outsider.
- The person is cut off from mainstream society, and lacks any altruistic feelings or connections to others (low social solidarity).
- Old age
21
Q
Altruistic suicide
A
- high integration
- This suicide occurs when the degree of social integration is too high, when the individual is too involved in the group and neglects their own needs.
- Individual is forced to commit suicide
- Assisted suicide
- Giving up your agency
- Individuals kills themselves out of a duty to the group
- For ex. someone who is part of a cult following, religious groups, soldier jumping on a grenade to save others
22
Q
“extreme” altruism
A
- Personal needs neglected
- “heroes” were burnt out
ex. Covid front line workers
23
Q
Anomic suicide
A
- low regulation
- New situations occur and old norms do not apply
- The transitions become difficult as a result of ‘normlessness’
- For ex. during an economic boom or bust!
- Note: Both positive and negative changes can lead an individual to experiences ‘normlessness’ or a change in their “normal” life conditions.
- Ex. Economy crumbles and you can’t adjust. About a quick shift from normal
- Shift in what is “normal”
- Lottery?
24
Q
Fatalistic suicide
A
- high regulation
- Individual needs to escape the controlling conditions which have stripped them of their “sense of self”
- Individuals see life as hopeless because of the oppressive regulation in their lives
- Ex. an inmate who spends life in solitary confinement
- *Fatalistic suicide was ‘under-developed’ in Durkheim’s
- Too much social pressure
25
Modernity and suicide
* Suicide is “normal” at certain rate
* Modernity should be aware of the rising rates of egoistic and anomic suicides.
* Durkheim suggests we need social reform (change in the structure of society) to prevent rising rates of suicide.
* Increased autonomy
* Increased individuality
* Less community participation
* Increased changes in society
* Fewer common social expectations keeping us together
26
Hegel and Kant
* Kant “idealist”
* Hegel takes from Kant (specifically the dialectical approach)
27
Marx and Hegel
* Marx takes from Hegel & “the dialectic” (knows there is much more to study)
* Marx becomes a “Young Hegelian”
* Sees that Hegel and his ideas are limited
* Marx borrows from L. Feuerbach (also a Young Hegelian) and “materialism”
* Marx suggests a “dialectical materialism”
28
Marx
Marx follows (and critiques) L. Feuerbach – both are critical of idealist philosophy, Marx sees that Feuerbach overlooks the ‘material world’ – combines this idea with Hegels dialectic.
Young Marx – most likely when he was a student.
Studied in Berlin under Hegel 1836 - he was 18.
29
New hegelians
* [Hegelian Leftists]
* Young Hegelians
- followed the logical methods of Hegel
- power of ideas
*Tensions emerged with the word of “Old Hegelians” (Right) vs. “Young Hegelians” (Left, pushing a new way of change)
30
Old Hegelians
- took Hegel's philosophy in a conservative and religious perspective
- Hegelian rightists
31
theoretical links
* Kant “idealist”
* Hegel takes from Kant (specifically the dialectical approach)
* Marx takes from Hegel & “the dialectic” (knows there is much more to study)
* Marx becomes a “Young Hegelian”
* Sees that Hegel and his ideas are limited
* Marx borrows from L. Feuerbach (also a Young Hegelian) and “materialism”
* Marx suggests a “dialectical materialism”
Young Marx – most likely when he was a student.
Studied in Berlin under Hegel 1836 - he was 18.
32
Dialectic (philosophical)
* A dynamic approach to social life as it focuses on processes, relations, instabilities, conflicts and contradictions to expose how ideas adjust and change.
* This is a philosophical framework.
* A tool that lets us discover the world in a very specific way
* history moves in a dialectical way
33
thesis, antithesis, synthesis
* thesis and antithesis are parts of the truth
* elements needs to find resolution
* progress is made through patterns of thesis and antithesis
* best known model of the dialectic
* but inadequate for sociological use
it is during these moments of ‘chaos’ that sociologists are assessing society and attempting to understand how ‘social order’ can be maintained or how a new society can overcome the chaos
34
Hegel
* Idealist
- Dialectic
- University of Berlin
- He is not preoccupied with revolution
* He only wants to talk about ideas
* Idealism emphasizes the mind and ‘mental products’ (or ideas and philosophies) rather than the real physical or ‘material’ products in the world.
* The biggest reality we have is in our mind
* Idealists believe that “mental processes” (ideas) would remain the same even if the social or physical world did not.
* For Hegel there seemed to be no need for evolutionary
35
Feuerbach
* “God is the mirror of man” (1841)
* Allowed Marx to sharpen his critique of Hegel.
* argued that Hegel was too focused on ideas like consciousness & ‘the spirit’ - society were merely “vessels swept along by the inevitable evolution of consciousness”.
* Feuerbach proposed that people, not abstract ideas should be the primary focus of a ‘materialist philosophy’
* Feuerbach observes that religion (which is made up on several abstract ideas and concepts) can tell us more about people than it can tell us about God.
* He was a “Young Hegelian”`
* Enabled Marx to move forward in his ideas.
* “[r]eligion is human nature reflected, mirrored in itself”
* Religion an abstract ‘concept’ represents the ‘reality’ of human existence
* God as projection
* Projecting attributes
36
Holy, omniscient, omnipresent, need to be whole
* God is holy is a projection of human desire to be free of sin
* God is omniscient is a projection of human failure to realize full potential
* God is omnipotent is a projection of human sense of vulnerability (and limited life)
* God is omnipresent is a projection of human sense of loneliness and mutual separation
37
Marx real material sources
* “The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways: the point, however is to change it” - Marx
* Materialist orientation (beyond religion)
* “the point is to change it”
* Humbolt University of Berlin
38
animal produce vs people produce
Unlike animals, the things or products that humans produce are a reflection of their social nature, their need to live in community, and their desire to share with others. People produce not only when there is a need to do so, but to be social, to express themselves and be creative.
39
Species being
* the inherent nature and essence of human beings as social, productive creatures. This idea is central to Marx's critique of capitalism and his understanding of human nature in the context of social relations
40
labour transforms nature
humans engage with nature, transforming raw materials into products that meet human needs. This transformation is essential for survival and progress, as it allows societies to develop and improve living conditions
41
Labour transforms people
engaging in productive labor shapes individuals’ character, values, and social relationships. It can lead to personal growth and fulfillment, but it can also result in alienation, especially in capitalist systems where workers may become disconnected from their labor and its products
42
Labour belongs to capitalists
labor becomes a commodity that is bought and sold in the market. Capitalists pay workers a wage for their labor, but the value created through that labor belongs to the owners of the means of production. This dynamic leads to exploitation, as capitalists profit from the surplus value generated by workers without fairly compensating them for their contribution.
43
Labour reduced to a wage
Marx criticized the commodification of labor, arguing that this reduction diminishes the true value of human work and experiences. When labor is merely viewed as a means to earn wages, it can lead to alienation, as workers may feel disconnected from the products of their labor, their creative potential, and their communities. This perspective emphasizes the need for a re-evaluation of how work is valued and organized in society.
44
Capitalism as oppressive
* has separated us from our ‘species being’ – therefore stunted our potential for change.
* Capitalism has changed the conditions of production.
* Capitalism has alienated people from the things they produce.
* Capitalism has distorted human nature or their “species being”.
45
estranged being
* closely associated with Karl Marx's critique of capitalist society and his theory of alienation
46
Alienated life
* Capitalism exploits workers, by keeping them happy in their state of alienation.
* Alienation is a fundamental aspect of capitalist societies, hindering true human fulfillment and collective solidarity.
* Overcoming alienation would require a revolutionary transformation of society, where individuals could reclaim their labor and develop their true potential.
* As along as workers are alienated and disconnected, they cannot work together to create changes in the capitalist system.
47
Alienated from product
* When workers are alienated from the product when the products they produce they do not own.
* Products are owned by capitalists, and deemed as private property.
* Products are sold by capitalists for a profit.
* Capitalists control how much products are sold for.
* Workers must (in turn) buy products to survive.
* People are judged more by the products they consume than the products they produce.
48
Alienated from process
* Workers work for capitalists, and it is capitalists who dictate the structure of their working lives.
* Tasks are broken down and workers are not connected to each step of the creation of the product.
* By engaging in very simplified tasks the worker is often bored and disconnected from the type of labour that can be satisfying.
* The worker becomes preoccupied with survival, or earning enough money to buy the products they need to survive.
49
Alienated from others
* In a demanding workplace there is little time to create in ‘community’
* A lack of ‘community’ in the workplace, creates high rates of social isolation.
* Demanding workplaces increase the rates of competition between workers, isolating them further.
* Overall: High rates of isolation, based on specified tasks and high demands, creates a hostile & competitive work place that alienates all workers from each other.
50
Alienated from ourselves ( & our human potential)
* Workers under capitalism feel alienated from their human potential.
* Workers feel unattached, disconnected, and least like ourselves.
* Capitalism sees workers as just a “cog in a wheel” of mechanization.
51
Keeping workers 'happy'
* Capitalism exploits workers, by keeping them happy in their state of alienation.
* As along as workers are alienated and disconnected, they cannot work together to create changes in the capitalist system.
* Happy, in this, however does not mean joyful, it means that workers work to maintain their standard of living.
52
reserve ARMY
* Instead of having to force people to participate, workers are often coerced into engaging in an economic system they seem to have little control over.
* Note: If and when they do not accept these conditions, capitalists (and the capitalist system) has a whole “reserve army” of unemployed individuals ready and waiting.
* Note: Coercion and force is not necessary.
* Note: Capitalism is much more than an economic system it is a system of power – as “power” is often hidden, and at times people simply ‘fall into place’ – they have limited options.
* Note: Capitalism creates a “reserve army” of unemployed individuals who will replace anyone who “chooses” not to participate.
53
is capitalism dead?
always yes, no and it depends
54
Laissez fair Capitalism
opposes any government intervention in business affairs
55
Base and superstructure
Base refers to the production forces, or the materials and resources, that generate the goods society needs. Superstructure describes all other aspects of society.
two linked theoretical concepts developed by Karl Marx
Marx argued that the base has a predominant influence on the superstructure, but the superstructure can also affect the base. Both the base and superstructure are social creations that are constantly evolving.
56
Dialectic (Marx)
* The dialectic focuses on contradictions, and the various attempts we propose to resolve the contradictions in our social life.
* Marx, unlike the philosophers of the past, could focus on conflicts and contradictions at various levels (base & superstructure) of society.
* In his view, society could be seen as a series of interrelated parts, not just as one cohesive traditional whole.
* Dialectic is about seeing ‘contradictions’ but finding solutions – organizing society in a ‘better’ way.
57
Fact and Value
* Dialectical thinkers believe you can not separate facts from the individual values a researcher holds
* To deny values (as a researcher) would be to deny the passion underlying the interest in your research project
* Being “value free” is different than being “objective”
* Sociologist live in their time
* compelled to find solutions to their plight
* Passionate
58
Reciprocal relations
* A dialectical thinker does not focus on linear interpretations of social reality.
* A dialectical thinker acknowledges a “dialectic totality” of social life in which they (as theorists & researchers) are embedded.
* A dialectical thinkers is attuned to the dynamic interplay between different (often conflicting) aspects of society.
* To a dialectical thinker focuses on causality (one thing leads to the next) – causality always occurs through a series of reciprocal relationships.
* social relations are dynamic
* multiple areas of inquiry
* material things like property, wage labour, workers, products, commodities, etc, have reciprocal effects not only on each other but also on other facets of social reality like religion or morals and values.
59
past, present, future
This means that sociologists and Marxists alike often consider the impact history has had on current social relations
60
No inevitability
* The dialectical view of the relationship between the present and the future need not imply that the future is determined by the present.
* Communism would come only through their choices and struggles.
* In the real world, there are no inevitabilities
61
Actors and structure
* Most of Marx interpretations focus on the ‘macro’ structures of society, such as capitalism and the unequal distribution of wealth
* However, this does not mean he overlooked micro sociological interpretations of capitalism
62
Human potential
* With the idea of ‘human potential’ Marx takes a ‘micro’ sociological dialectical approach to expose the tensions associated with alienation under capitalism.
* Capitalism has changed labour, labour no longer has the potential to change us because the structure of capitalism constrain ‘human potential’.
* is rooted in capitalist society
* human potential has been stunted
63
Materiality
* can be defined as the “things that are material” which emphasize the physical aspects of “things”, but it can also relate to “non-physical” notions, behaviors, ideas, or ideologies that are exchanged in social life.
* Materiality is just as much about ‘ideas’ that rule our world, as it is about the ‘physical things’ we produce. Ideas and “things” are all socially produced.
* The focus of ‘materiality’ is how the ‘material world’ influences social RELATIONS.
64
Material World
* Putting our ideas into reality
* Change is immanent, specifically because people are continually changing the conditions of the material reality.
* How people cope & react is not independent from the material world, but a product of that world.
65
Material Conditions
* Material conditions, cannot succeed without a ‘belief system’
* The ‘ideology’ that develops is representative of the shift in the ‘materiality’
* The ideology that emerges is based on the material conditions
* Shapes social structures, ideologies, and institutions
* Changes in the relations of society
66
Historical materialism
* theoretical approach
* a methodological approach developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
* The focus is on the development of society and history as driven by material conditions, especially economic factors and the means of production.
* According to this framework, social structures, ideologies, and institutions are shaped by the material conditions [social constructs] of a society at any given time.
* Historical materialism focuses on how these conditions evolve over time [past, present, future] and how they influence class struggle, social change, and historical development [relations of power].
* material conditions and human consciousness
* reacting to the material conditions of our world
67
Material production and surplus
* life has generally improved and they want to keep it that way
* The forces of material production are always encouraging change, even under the most exploitive systems of inequality.
68
who controls the surplus
* Bourgeoisie and capitalists
69
Dominant ideology
* In a Marxist sense, "dominant ideology" refers to the set of beliefs, values, and norms that are prevalent in a society and serve to justify and maintain the power of the ruling class.
* The ruling class uses this dominant ideology to shape public perception and ensure that the existing social order is accepted and perpetuated, often at the expense of the working class.
* The concept of dominant ideology is closely tied to material conditions [materiality] and the economic base of society.
70
Exploitation
* the systematic appropriation of surplus value from labor by capitalists, which is central to his critique of capitalism.
* This exploitation is characterized by unequal power dynamics, wage labor, and alienation, leading to class struggle and the potential for revolutionary change.
71
each new exploiting group aims to secure control in various ways... which are...
- Religion
- Warfare
- Social Control
- Legal rule
These non-economic forms of control have tremendous economic impact.
- Note: Each of these relates to non-productive relations to maintain privilege for its own group (related to dominant ideologies & superstructure). Through political, judicial, and religious means it secures its dominant position in society.
- Note: Each ‘exploiting group’ creates non-economic ‘superstructure’ to safe guard the sources of its own privileges in the economic ‘base’.
72
Privilege minority
* For the production of commodities to be developed further, the resources must be gathered together (and protected) by a small, privileged minority of society – polarization is the outcome – exploitation is always necessary.
73
Polarization
* The process of ‘polarization’ refers to the distinction between those who exploit and those who are exploited.
* Historically, each new “exploiting group” [those who exploit others] has had its origins in the role of production.
* Each new exploiting group has focused on the most efficient way to control ‘surplus’ and to control ‘means of production’.
* Expanding resources
* Control over the means of production
* Non-productive forms of social control
* Controlling the base to extract surplus
* Limiting the potential for change
74
Bi-polarization
* Two classes
* under capitalism, class tends to be structured around two distinct positions – the bourgeoisie (owners) and the proletariat (workers).
* Capitalism leads to this polarization due to the dynamics of capital accumulation and labor exploitation.
* Class conflict
75
bourgeoisie
- This class owns the means of production—factories, machinery, and resources. They derive their wealth from exploiting labor, aiming to maximize profit.
76
Proletariat
- This class comprises individuals who sell their labor to the bourgeoisie in exchange for wages. They do not own the means of production and rely on employment for survival.
- working class
77
Class conscientiousness
* Class conflict would eventually occur when people become aware of their conflicting relation to other classes. Without awareness a class would only be a class ‘in itself’
* Increased class consciousness can only come about when there is a shift from a class being ‘in itself’ to a class ‘for itself’.
* You cannot have this shift if EXPLOITATION AND ALIENATION continue to DOMINATE.
* Class for itself
* Class in itself
78
Engels
worked alongside Marx
- communist manifesto
79
Change
* WORKERS HAD POTENTIAL TO CREATE CHANGE.
* Consciousness was necessary for this to occur.
* change is rooted [can be found in, can be gathered from] in material reality.
* At times Capitalists are not open to change – because they want to control the means of production – which means the dominant ideologies often fail or are doomed to fail (according to Marx)
* Although dominant ideologies prevent change, change is rooted in material reality.
* Change is immanent, specifically because people are continually changing the conditions of the material reality.
* The forces of material production are always encouraging change, even under the most exploitive systems of inequality.
80
Communist Manifesto
* Marx and Engels
* It was a 23 page pamphlet.
* Later recognized as one of the central / most influential political statements on ‘class’ struggle.
* Commissioned by the Communist League, it aimed to rally workers around a common cause against the capitalist system, which Marx and Engels argued exploited the proletariat (working class) for the benefit of the bourgeoisie (capitalist class).
* The manifesto outlines the historical development of class struggle, emphasizing that all history is characterized by conflicts between oppressor and oppressed.
81
Class "an sich" (in itself)
* in itself
- a class "an sich" lacks awareness or consciousness of its collective interests.
* Members share similar conditions, economic status or type of labor, but do not recognize these as shared experiences.
* This class does not act collectively.
82
* Class "für sich"
* for itself
- a class "für sich" is one that has developed class consciousness and is aware of its collective experiences and potential for political action.
* This class recognizes shared struggles and organizes to collective actions, creating strikes or political movements.
83
Duality Capitalism
* Historically, capitalism has created a ‘free market’ based on voluntary exchange between citizens.
* Capitalism provides those who engage in this system a lot of opportunities (unlike during times of slavery).
* Marx believed that the capitalist practices, that focused on individual freedom, where inverted.
* Marx points out that it is capital that is free and it is we that are enslaved.
* Out of desperation, workers ‘freely’ [happily] choose to accept the wages set by capitalists.
* We have come to identify more with ‘capital’ and have left behind the dynamic process of labour.
84
"[A]nimals also produce. They build nests and dwelling, like the bee, the beaver, the ant, etc. But they produce only their own immediate needs or those of their young; they produce only when immediate physical need compels them to do so, while man produces even when he is free from physical need and truly produces only in freedom from such need; they produce only themselves, while man reproduces the whole of nature; their products belong immediately to their physical bodies, while man freely confronts his own product."
Marx
85
“Men can be distinguished from animals by consciousness, by religion or anything else you like. They themselves begin to distinguish themselves from animals as soon as they begin to produce their means of subsistence, a step which is conditioned by their physical organization”
Marx
86
“The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways: the point, however is to change it”
Marx
87
“The less you eat, drink and buy books; the less you go to the theater, the dance hall, the public house, the less you think, love, theorize, sing, paint, fence, etc., the more you save — the greater becomes your treasure which neither moths nor rust will devour — your capital. The less you are, the less you express your own life, the more you have, i.e., the greater is your alienated life, the greater is the store of your estranged being. Everything which the political economist takes from you in life and in humanity, he replaces for you in money and in wealth; and all the things which you cannot do, your money can do. It can eat and drink, go to the dance hall and the theater; it can travel, it can appropriate art, learning, the treasures of the past, political power — all this it can appropriate for you — it can buy all this: it is true endowment. “
Marx
88
"The conditions of capitalism have changed the conditions of labour, so much so that labour is not longer “voluntary” but [it is] “coercive” or “forced labour”-
Marx
89
“Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past. The tradition of all dead generations weighs like a nightmare on the brains of the living”.
Marx
90
“the representations which express the nature of sacred things and the relationships which they sustain”
Durkheim
91
“the rules of conduct which prescribe how a man should comport himself in the presence of these sacred objects”
Durkheim
92
"If religion has given birth to all that is essential in society, it is because the idea of society is the soul of religion"
Durkheim
93
“…that day favors suicide because this is the time of most active existence, when human relations cross and recross, when social life is most intense.”
Durkheim
94
“For the countryside, Winter is a time of rest approaching stagnation. All life seems to stop; human relations are fewer both because of atmospheric conditions and because they lose their incentive with the general slackening of activity. People seem really asleep. In Spring, however, everything begins to awake; activity is resumed, relations spring up, interchanges increase, whole popular migrations take place to meet the needs of agricultural labor. Now these special conditions of rural life must have a great influence on the monthly distribution of suicides, since more than half the total of voluntary deaths comes from the country”
Durkheim
95
“City life itself is more active during the fine season. Communications being easier then, people travel more readily and inter-social relations increase…. the maximum generally occurs in Spring in great cities, unlike the rest of society. Even where Spring is surpassed by Summer (Paris and Frankfurt), the increase in the latter season is slight. This is because during the fine season a veritable migration of the chief public personages takes place”
Durkheim
96
“The only essential difference between Catholicism and Protestantism is that the second permits free inquiry to a far greater degree than the first…”
Durkheim
97
“vessels swept along by the inevitable evolution of consciousness”
Feuerbach
98
“God is the mirror of man”
Feuerach
99
“The production of ideas, of conceptions, of consciousness, is at first directly interwoven with the material activity and the material intercourse of men, the language of real life. Conceiving, thinking, the mental intercourse of men, appear at this stage as the direct efflux of their material behaviour. The same applies to mental production as expressed in the language of politics, laws, morality, religion, metaphysics, etc., of a people. Men are the producers of their conceptions, ideas, etc. – real, active men, as they are conditioned by a definite development of their productive forces and of the intercourse corresponding to these, up to its furthest forms. Consciousness can never be anything else than conscious existence, and the existence of men is their actual life-process.”
Marx
100
“The Manifesto being our joint production, I consider myself bound to state that the fundamental proposition which forms the nucleus belongs to Marx. That proposition is: That in every historical epoch, the prevailing mode of economic production and exchange, and the social organization necessarily following from it, form the basis upon which it is built up, and from that which alone can be explained the political and intellectual history of that epoch; that consequently the whole history of mankind (since the dissolution of primitive tribal society, holding land in common ownership) has been a history of class struggles…”
Engels
101
