Sociology and The Structural Functional Theory

The Structural Functional Theory was created by Emile Durkheim and was the study of how Society stays together without falling apart answering the question of how Society reproduces themselves. This theory is partially about each individual's dependence on others. Not dependence in a traditional sense but for survival.

This may have begun at the start of the Industrial Revolution when more and more people went to the cities looking for work. Living in a city of strangers is a far different existence from living amongst family and a close knit community, or a smaller society.

I was fascinated to learn more about smaller societies that are held together by mechanical solidarity. Its a way of life I can't personally imagine dealing with. To live in a society that has no tolerance for differences or diversity would make me feel trapped. However, if a person has grown up in a society like this, it may be the only way they know. It can also make a person want to flee and find another way to live.

Imagine leaving a community like this to come to a city like New York. How shocking it would be to learn to survive. This is where learning to live with strangers forces dependence on one another to survive and makes modern society more cohesive.

There are several options our society engages in to survive. One is that we often depend on people to talk through our problems, whether it be to a person's best friend, mother, father etc or a co-worker or the bartender at the corner bar.  It's a way to stay connected. When a person is disconnected from society, they may not feel able to survive.

It all comes down to a division of labor. In other words, diversity fosters a dependence on one another. A good example might be a teacher and student relationship. While in today's world, of course a person can do research on the internet on their own, etc, but a major part of learning is from being taught by others. In school, students also learn things that are latent. For example, while a person goes to school to learn the basics of math, English, science, history, etc, on the playground they are also learning about class, racial differences, social divisions and social hierarchy.  Its not what is advertised as a benefit of going to school, but it is in fact a benefit. A college student is not only learning about the subject they want to study but they are also learning to live on their own, control their spending, learn responsibility and more.

Life will and should continue to teach us things we are not expecting and these things will keep us growing. Depending on one another is not a weakness, but it is necessary for survival along with being a part of the Structural Functional Theory.