Emile Durkheim and Max Weber on Religion

Paper Summary:

This paper compares and contrasts the ideas of the French thinker Emile Durkheim and the German economist Max Weber. The writer discusses how Durkheim was interested in defining and explaining religion as a force that drives people, whereas Max Weber focused on identifying its relationship to other social and economic phenomena. Durkheim believed that religion is the basis of social organization and behavior, while Max Weber did not look at the population as a whole when analyzing its religious aspects, but at each individual. The writer concludes that, although their views differed on how religion influences society, in attempting to establish new rules and view religion from different perspectives they represent, together with Karl Marx, the foundational sociological traditions examining the "institution" of religion.

From the Paper:

"Both Emile Durkheim and Max Weber approached religion in order to identify its connections with external forces. While Durkheim looked at religion in terms of a social connection and a social determination, Weber analyzed it from the standpoint of economic development. The approach taken by Durkheim is more complex in regard to the actual religious features as it presents the sacred and profane division of human activities, whereas Weber's approach is more economic and tries to identify a connection between economically emerging countries and the religion practiced by its inhabitants."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Abukuma, M., Max Weber's Approach to Religion, ASAHI Net, http://www.ne.jp/asahi/moriyuki/abukuma/outline/weber_appr.html last accessed on April 11, 2008
• Aldridge, A., 2000, Religion in the Contemporary World: A Sociological Introduction, Polity Press
• Aleen, D., 1978, Structure and Creativity in Religion, de Gruyter, Walter GmbH & Co. KG
• Townsley, J., 2004, Mark, Weber and Durkheim on Religion, http://www.jeramyt.org/papers/sociology-of-religion.html last accessed on April 11, 2008
• Waardenburg, J.J., 1999, Classical Approaches to the Study of Religion: Aims, Methods and Theories of Research, Water de Gruyter Inc

More papers on Emile Durkheim and Max Weber on Religion:

• Comparison Essay # 104116 : "Emile Durkheim and Max Weber"
• Comparison Essay # 98439 : "Society and Societal Change"
• Comparison Essay # 139026 : "Weber and Durkheim on Industrial Modern Society"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: