Emile Durkheim's Three Sociologists

Title There are so many economic issues in this world today that it may be hard to choose just one to talk about, but I choose to talk about one of the most recent issues that has really taken a toll on the society. Law enforcement is a big factor now a days all over the world. We are always hearing about it, whether it’s for the good or the bad. Specifically I am going to talk about how one of the three Sociologists would analyze this current issue. The Sociologist I choose is Emile Durkheim, not only because his work is the most fresh in my head but because I believe that I understand his theories the best out of the three. As law enforcement can be a very broad topic, I am going to narrow it down to police assassinations, and even more …show more content…
This is separated into two different functions, manifest and latent. Durkheim says if you only examine the manifest functions, then that may lead to irrational behavior and if you only examine the latent functions then that will reveal the logic behind the irrational behavior. So a good example of this would be, examining the irrational behavior that was associated with the gunman, and on the latent side, like I mentioned earlier, why did he shoot two innocent officers and why did he shoot them so many times. Then giving him the discipline he deserves for his irrational behavior. Another big idea that Durkheim had was about Religion. Specifically I am going to talk about his characteristics of Religion. I believe that this situation has to do with religion mainly because if you were a very religious individual, then you wouldn’t perform an act like this. So, Durkheim says that this is an empirical approach where it studies the original religious forms. For example, he focuses a lot on space, time, and causality. He says those three have their origins in social experiences, and with this being a social experience, Durkheim is able to analyze this using his idea of …show more content…
In this situation where an individual is committing such crime, Durkheim would say he is a rationalist, where everything around him is already hard-wired into him and whatever happens to him is what derives his motives. Another term that Durkheim mentions along with these characteristics is Sui generis, which means “of its own kind.” This also means that it is the primacy of society, being the more important or the more dominant factor in the society. I think this goes along well with the topic I chose because law enforcement is “of its own kind,” because it takes a lot of strength and courage to go risk your life every day to protect everyone else in our society. Not many individuals are willing to do that, and that is what makes them the primacy of our society. They are the more dominant group in our towns today. I think that is how Durkheim would analyze them as