The Culture Dimension Of Durkheim’Sociological Theroy

As one of the main founders of classical sociological theory, Durkheim’s sociological theory has received widespread concern. However, scholars mainly focus on Durkheim’s structure dimension and positivist methodology, while the cultural dimensions in his theory have been neglected. Since the1890s, Durkheim’s theory began to shift to the subjective direction rapidly, and eventually formed its unique cultural programs of sociology. In this cultural theory, Durkheim focused on three broad themes:The division of sacred and profane is common whether in religion or in secular society, and this division is symbolic expression of moral emotions of community. The symbol system has its internal structure and autonomy, so the relationship of each symbol must be taken into account. Once symbolic system formed, which will follow its own logic and play a role in the actual social life like really variables. Thus, in order to examine its independent effect, it should be separated from other variables. Ceremony is a symbol behavior of the people’s moral sentiments, and thus, this kind of behavior is not the inner experience, which does not follow the rational means. In addition, ceremony plays an important role in the integration of the community and the identification of membership. Contemporary cultural scholars inherit and develop Durkheim’s cultural theory from different perspectives. A "cultural Durkheim" began to replace the previously "structural Durkheim". The continuous development of Durkheim’s cultural theory ultimately contributed to the1980s "cultural turn". This "cultural turn" is different from the mainstream of sociological macro-or micro-theory, in which the autonomy of culture is emphasized. Based on Durkheim’s cultural theory, Contemporary scholars make further exploration of the autonomy of culture. Jeffrey C. Alexander proposed a new path of cultural study based in a "strong program", which he called "cultural sociology", which considers culture as an independent variable, emphasizes its internal structure and internal power rather than the "sociology of culture", the later regards culture as whether abstract or as a synonym for value, or even considers it is controlled by such as structures, systems and other "hard" variables. Durkheim’s theory of cultural is one of the theory sources of Alexander’s "cultural sociology" This path of cultural study advocated by Durkheim and Alexander is one of the possible directions of a new kind of cultural studies.