Social Theory: Collective Memory
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Transcript of Social Theory: Collective Memory
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Social Theory: Collective Memory
Bin XuAssistant Professor of Sociology and Asian
StudiesFlorida International University
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Durkheim Review
• Major Works• The Division of Labor
of Society (1893)• The Rules of
Sociological Method (1895)
• On Suicide (1897)• The Elementary Forms
of Religious Life (1912)
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The Elementary Forms of Religious Life (1912)
• Key Arguments (Fields, Introduction to The Elementary Forms)
• Definition of Religion• The God/Society Equation• Case selection
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The Elementary Forms of Religious Life (1912)
Key Arguments (Fields, Introduction to The Elementary Forms)• Conscience
collective/collective consciousness • Sacred/profane dichotomy• Religious life in seemingly nonreligious
life• Rituals
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Interaction ritual chain (Randall Collins)
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The Elementary Forms and Collective Memory
• Mythical past at the core of group identity and solidarity
• Mythical past refers “common beliefs, their common tradition, the memory of their great ancestors, their collective ideal,” etc.
• Myth of origin; religion provides an all-embracing structure beliefs and practices pertaining to the past.
• Rituals strengthen the myth
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The Elementary Forms and Collective Memory
• Piacular rites1. Mourning2. Other piacular rites
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Issues in Durkheim’s Collective Memory Theory• A communal idea of memory with an
emphasis on the “collective”1. Memory as the core of identity2. Ritual unifies the community3. Mourning strengthens the community