Durkheim's Theory Of Morality Essay

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‘It is from society and not from the individual that morality derives’ (Durkheim 1974: 61). According to Emile Durkheim ‘morality begins with the membership and life of a group…and that society creates all moral codes, not individuals’ (Durkheim 1974: 37). He stated that an individual cannot exist without society or deny it, without denying himself. Zygmunt Bauman however disagrees and believes morality is a pre-social impulse and therefore does not originate in society. In this essay I will first explore Durkheim’s theory of morality. I will then interrogate Durkheim’s claim that moral values come from society and are solely directed towards society by examining Bauman’s critique of his theory exemplified in ‘Modernity and the Holocaust’(Bauman 1989). Furthermore I will explore Bauman’s use of Weber as a form of advancement towards his critique of Durkhemian theory of morality and the ‘civilising process’. Lastly I will also explore Bauman’s change in ideas after writing ‘Modernity and the Holocaust’ by examining his new way of thinking exemplified in one of his most famous works ‘Liquid Modernity’. This essay will set out to challenge and evaluate critiques and conflicting theories from both Durkheim and Bauman as social theorists, and critically examine opposing ideologies.

Durkheim’s conception of morality is summarised in the chapter ‘The Determination of Moral Facts’ in his work ‘Sociology and Philosophy (Durkheim 1974) in which he argued that morality is a social force and that it is a product of the collective conscience. Morals are born from society through social interaction. Durkheim argued that social integration is dependent on its recognition by society. He states that ‘in order to observe the nature of moral facts...

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...Bauman advances this critique of Durkheimian theory of morality by making use of Max Weber’s theory of bureaucratization and the civilized society. Bauman argues that Weber’s work helps reveal the ways in which bureaucracy has the ability to end rational action and moral thought by systematically rendering morality immune to processes overseen by irrational norms. Here he uses the Holocaust again to portray how a ‘civilized society’ can use bureaucratization to systematically administrate and orchestrate the genocide committed by the Nazi regime. After Bauman’s ‘Modernity and the Holocaust’ he refers to a new type of modernity dubbed ‘liquid modernity’ to describe a more liquid form of societal life. Bauman now believes that the liquid or fluid society is not based upon a solid structure but rather a liquid society that does not have a structure and is unsystematic.

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