Durkheim's thesis about social solidarity, based on his opinions, which explain individuals influenced by social facts. The social facts he outlined and defined as “things” (Ritzer, p 185) are spoken languages, buildings and ethics. Durkheim viewed social facts as external to the individual but nevertheless powerful in shaping the individual. Social facts defined as material and immaterial. Visible material social facts such as buildings, while non-material social facts are difficult to see but as a society we know they exist. Nonmaterial social facts are customs, cultures, and norms for any given society (Ritzer, p 188). Social facts according to Durkheim required research. Durkheim believed that the study of non-material social facts was the most significant and central to his theory (Ritzer, p 188). Consequently, Durkheim theorized two different types of society, based on two different types of solidarity. . The first is “Mechanical Solidarity” (Palumbo et al, 2005), a society based on collective consciousness, which shares common beliefs, norms and values. Within Mechanical Solidarity, defined as “traditional” and “small-scale” (Sociology Index), individuals experience solidarity based on a strong sense of belonging to their community,2 through work, religious beliefs and lifestyles similar. An example of mechanical solidarity could be a smaller city or area, working together sharing common values within the community, or perhaps even an area where strong religious beliefs bind them to each other. According to (Palumbo et al, 2005) within Mechanical Solidarity, individuals did not have a strong individual identity, but experienced strong bonds within their… medium of paper… Durkheim and Marx introduced valid points regarding to the company. I don't think they are both entirely right, but I think the fusion of their theories and concepts sums up society as it is today.5 References: Durkheim's Anomie. (ND). Retrieved January 16, 2014, from http://criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/week8.htm.Palumbo, Antonio and Scott, Alan. (2005). Classical social theory I: Marx and Durkheim. Modern social theory. A. Harrington (ed.). Oxford University Press, Oxford 2005, pp. 40-62, Retrieved January 16, 2014, from, http://www.academia.edu/683127/Classical_Social_Theory_I_Marx_and_DurkheimRitzer, George (2011). Classical Sociological Theory, (6th edition). Boston: McGraw Hill. Sociology Index. (ND). Retrieved January 16, 2014, from http://www.sociologyindex.com/mechanical_solidarity.htm
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