Emile Durkheim was a French philosopher who was born on April 15, 1858. Durkheim recognized Auguste Comte as his master. From a sociological point of view, when Comte and Herbert Spencer were considered the founders of sociology, Durkheim is considered the grandfather and the systematic approach to the study of society began with him. One of Durkheim's famous books, "Suicide", published in 1897, is related in various ways to his study of the division of labor and is also linked to the theory of "social constraint". Durkheim claimed that there was no society in which suicide did not occur. Durkheim rejects most of the accepted theories about suicide and, based on his monographic studies, declares suicide to be primarily a social phenomenon in the sense of the breakdown of the vital bond of life. In his classic study of "suicide", Durkheim shows that neither the psychopathic factor, nor heredity, nor climate nor poverty, nor other personal factors are motivating enough to explain suicide. He used a series of statistical records to establish his basic idea that suicide is also a social fact and that social order and disorder are the very root of suicide.
Durkheim used statistical analysis for two main reasons: a. To disprove theories about suicide based on psychological, biological, genetic, climatic and geographical factors. b. Support your own sociological explanation of suicide with empirical evidence. According to Durkheim's definition, suicide means "any death directly or indirectly caused by the work or death of the victim and which seeks to bring about the result". Suicide is not an individual or personal act for him. It is caused by some power that is above or above the individual. It is not a personal situation, but a manifestation of the social state. He looked at "all kinds of death resulting directly or indirectly from the positive or negative actions of the victim himself, who knows the result they produce." After defining the phenomenon, Durkheim rejects a psychological explanation. Many doctors and psychologists develop the theory that most people who take their own lives are in a pathological state, but Durkheim emphasizes that the force that determines suicide is not psychological, but social. He concluded that suicide is the result of conflict or a lack of unity or relationship through today's business world.
Types of Suicide Emile Durkheim classified the different types of suicide according to the different types of relationships between the individual and society. (1) Egoistic suicide: Durkheim believed that a person self-destructs when left alone or feeling out of place in society. Egoistic suicide is a product of collective weakness. It takes place as a result of extreme loneliness and also from an excess of individualism. It is the suicide of a self-centered person who lacks altruistic feelings and is usually cut off from the mainstream of society. Such individuals feel insulted, hurt, ignored and alienated, and this makes them feel the need to commit suicide. (2) Altruistic suicide: Altruistic suicide occurs when the individual and the group are too close and intimate. It results from excessive integration of the individual into the social group. This type of suicide takes the form of a sacrifice in which an individual ends his heroic means to support a cause or ideal that is very dear to him. Simply put, altruistic suicide takes one's life because of something, for example - satistic practices, Japanese Harakiri, self-immolation by Buddhist monks, self-destruction in Nirvana, etc. (3) Anomic suicide: This type of suicide is caused by some disturbance in social balance and sudden social changes. It follows catastrophic social changes such as natural disasters, collapse of political and social norms, economic crisis, etc. Those who fail to adapt to sudden changes commit anomic suicide. These three types of suicide understood as social types also roughly correspond to psychological types. "Suicide is usually caused by a lack of apathy and commitment to life; altruistic suicide is a state of strength and passion; paranormal suicide is characterized by irritability or a dirty state." ~ Raymond J. Allen. Aron pointed out that Durkheim in his study of "suicide" successfully demonstrated the social fact that there are "specific social phenomena that govern individual phenomena.
The most impressive and telling example is
social forces that drive individuals to their deaths, each believing that they
obey only themselves. He believed that the incidence of suicide varied among
different social groups or groups. According to him, Protestants committed
suicide more often than Catholics (Catholicism is able to integrate more into
their flock, whereas Protestantism encourages a spirit of inquiry, allows for
great individual freedom, lacks hierarchical organization, and has fewer shared
beliefs and practices); people in large cities committed suicide more often
than people living in families; people with fragile or People who are not well
connected to their community are more likely to commit suicide than those who
are well connected. Critical Evaluation of Durkheim's Theory: While Durkheim's
theory of suicide is very useful for understanding this phenomenon, it refers
to the social rather than biological or individual. The main drawback of this
theory is that he placed too much emphasis on only one factor, namely social,
and forgot or undermined other factors, especially psychological, making his
theory flawed and only one-sided.
Conclusion:
Émile Durkheim's theory of suicide has
profoundly influenced our understanding of human behavior and the intricate
relationship between individuals and their societies. By recognizing the
importance of social integration and regulation, and acknowledging the impact
of cultural norms, his work reminds us of the multifaceted nature of suicide.
As we continue to grapple with the complexities of mental health and well-being
in diverse cultural settings, Durkheim's sociological approach remains a
guiding light in our efforts to create more supportive and inclusive societies.
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