Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the functionalist view that religion benefits both society as a whole and its individual members

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Using material from Item A and elsewhere, assess the functionalist view that religion benefits both society as a whole and its individual members

18 marks.

Functionalist say that society is like a living organism and all the social institutions perform specific functions in order to help society function effectively.

The sociologist Durkheim says that a key feature of religion is not a belief in Gods, spirits or the supernatural, but a fundamental distinction between the scared and the profane. The sacred are things set apart and forbidden which inspire feelings of awe and wonder. By contrast, the profane are things that have no special significance, things that are ordinary and mundane.

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Durkheim believed that the essence of all religion could be found by studying it’s simplest form, in the simplest type of society. He studied totems, which he said was a society worshipping sacred symbols and rituals which were meant to symbolize all of society.

In Durkheim’s view, sacred symbols represent society’s collective conscience or consciousness. The collective conscience is the shared norms and values of society. For Durkheim shared religious rituals reinforced the collective conscience and maintain social integration. Durkheim also says that religion helps individuals with cognitive functions, as it teaches us basic concepts.

Anthropologist, Malinowski ...

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