Sociology is the study of the development, structure and functioning of human society as a whole. Ask yourself: Who deserves the credit for making sociology a science? The founding father, Emile Durkheim, is recognized for having made sociology a science. The explanation of how society functions by focusing on the relationships between the different social institutions that compose it is called structural functionalism. Emile Durkheim developed his theory on structural functionalism by creating a series of theories; functionalism, division of labor and anomie. All of these theories were based on facts, values ​​and social structures in which society is composed of interdependent parts. Durkheim has many contributions to sociology that have impacted people's perspective on life. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Émile Durkheim was born and raised in France in a family of Jewish origin. Later in his life, he decided to settle in Paris where he sparked an interest in Catholicism, but he chose not to pursue it any longer. Emile wrote famous books such as Suicide and The Division of Labor in Society which dealt with his experiences on religion, social pathologies, methodology and crime. Like most people, Durkheim's contributions, social facts and values ​​were driven by inspiration; this inspiration was the positivist and realist perspectives of Auguste Comte which made Durkheim understand that he had to study religion from an agnostic point of view. In the book “Suicide,” Durkheim shares his beliefs about how what is considered the most individual act is actually a result of the social world, not just the individual. Additionally, everything we do as individuals affects the entire world. So he decided to test this theory by comparing suicide rates among Catholics and Protestants. His result was that Catholics had lower suicide rates because social control was more stable there, while among Protestants their suicide rates were higher because of less integration and structure. He hypothesized that suicide can be provoked by three main scenarios: fatalistic, selfish, anomic and altruistic scenes. Whenever there are loose ties or a lack of social connections with a social group, it is called selfish suicide. For example, a high school student sits alone at the lunch table and feels upset because he has no friends or is too attached to a group. When a person commits suicide for the benefit of others or a community by prioritizing individuals or group members, it is defined as altruistic suicide. For example, a hand grenade is thrown into a room full of soldiers and one of them jumps on the grenade knowing he will die, but hopes the other soldiers will survive. Durkheim also believed that self-sacrifice was an example of selflessness in war. To continue, a condition in which individuals are characterized by an absence or diminution of norms or values ​​is defined as anomie. Imagine the scenario of the Great Depression, when unemployment was at its peak and many people could no longer provide for their families. Families were then evicted from their homes and felt that life no longer had meaning for them, leading to suicide. Fatalistic suicide occurs when an individual is subjected to strong oppression and sees no possible way to improve their.