This is a new release of the original 1940 edition.

"The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life" is the classic and unabridged work on the sociology of religion by one of the founders of the modern science of sociology-now presented in a quality centennial edition. Look for the "modern" edition published by "Quid Pro," showing a "red" cover.] Emile Durkheim examines religion as a social phenomenon, across time and geographic boundaries. Some of the most elemental forms of social organization are analyzed, along with their religious beliefs and practices, to determine what is fundamental and shared by societies about religion and faith.

By examining some of the most basic forms of religion, particularly in aboriginal Australia and native America, and using a creative sociological and anthropological approach, Durkheim discovered the core of what separates religion from ritual, mysticism, science, and mere magic-what makes the soul more than a spirit. He lays bare the notion that the "primitive" rite, or any religion, is mainly about fear.

Part of the "Classics of the Social Sciences" Series from Quid Pro Books, this contemporary republication includes embedded page numbers from the standard print editions, for continuity of citations across print platforms and Quid Pro's eBook edition (also with the red cover). Standard pagination is a very useful feature for research, classwork, and group assignments.

This work is simply part of the canon of its field (both in cultural anthropology and in the sociology of religion), and is presented by Quid Pro in contemporary paperback and eBook formats. It includes 2012 Notes of the Series Editor, Steven Alan Childress, Ph.D., J.D., a senior professor of law at Tulane University.

2012 Reprint of 1954 Edition. Exact facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. "The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life" analyzes religion as a social phenomenon. Durkheim attributes the development of religion to the emotional security attained through communal living. According to Durkheim, early humans associated such feelings not only with one another, but with objects in their environment. This, Durkheim believed, led to the ascription of human sentiments and superhuman powers to these objects, in turn leading to totemism. The essence of religion, Durkheim finds, is the concept of the sacred, that being the only phenomenon which unites all religions. "A religion," writes Durkheim, "is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden - beliefs and practices which unite into a single moral community called a Church, all those who adhere to them." In modern societies, the individual and individual rights evolve to become the new sacred phenomena, and hence these may be called "religious" for Durkheim. Durkheim examined religion using such examples as Pueblo Indian rain dances, the religions of aboriginal tribes in Australia, and alcoholic hallucinations.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

Contained In The January, 1940 South Atlantic Quarterly, Vol. 39, No. 1.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

Contained In The January, 1940 South Atlantic Quarterly, Vol. 39, No. 1.

In The Elementary Forms of Religious Life (1912), Emile Durkheim sets himself the task of discovering the enduring source of human social identity. He investigates what he considered to be the simplest form of documented religion - totemism among the Aborigines of Australia. For Durkheim,
studying Aboriginal religion was a way 'to yield an understanding of the religious nature of man, by showing us an essential and permanent aspect of humanity'. The need and capacity of men and women to relate to one another socially lies at the heart of Durkheim's exploration, in which religion
embodies the beliefs that shape our moral universe.
The Elementary Forms has been applauded and debated by sociologists, anthropologists, ethnographers, philosophers, and theologians, and continues to speak to new generations about the intriguing origin and nature of religion and society. This new, lightly abridged edition provides an excellent
introduction to Durkheim's ideas.