Many simple societies are shaped and organized according to kinship. But what about our contemporary, complex societies? What is the glue that keeps us together?
Earlier, we spoke about belonging and about outcasts. This month, I will go back to that discussion, not in the least because many of the questions I receive in response to my articles pertain to this topic.
This first week of revisiting the anthropology of belonging will center on the question asked by Emile Durkheim toward the end of the nineteenth century: What hold societies together, or what is the nature of solidarity? These questions contemplated by Durkheim continue to inform much of Anthropological research.
Family Ties
Family ties are awesome social glue- they keep families and clans together, for the most part at least. Many simple societies are shaped and organized according to kinship. But what about our contemporary, complex societies? What is the glue that keeps us together?
Solidarity: Found in Difference?
Some people suggest that sameness is the basis of solidarity. In the article on belonging, we touched on research that indicates that people who stray from group norms too far, as at risk of being outcast. Social rejection, I concluded, is the group's way of maintaining its integrity and of "punishing," to put it a bit crudely, behavior that threatens this integrity. Yet by the same token, small, simple and homogeneous communities often set out to actively create differences. John Monaghan and Peter Just (2000( give the example of colleges and Universities. While many of them are extremely similar, they will put up fierce competitions in sports and exaggerate incidental differences between the institutions. To what end you ask? Yep. To create a sense of belonging.
Or in Sameness?
At the same time, large and complex societies may need to create some vision of itself as a coherent and consistent thing. After all, with many different parts that depend on each other, there's got to be some glue to keep it together. Take Canada. This vast country between the Atlantic Ocean on the one side, the Pacific Ocean on the other, and the Arctic Ocean to the north actively protects the cultural heritage of immigrants. While a multicultural, egalitarian and multi-lateral way of life is a cornerstone of the Canadian identity, without hockey, the national anthem, monuments and celebrations- what Durkheim called "collective representations" that recognize symbols of social solidarity- the country might not do as well as it does.
The Irony of it All
As John Monaghan and Peter Just (2000) point out, it is ironic indeed that simple societies actively set out to create differences, while complex and diverse societies have to strain to create a sense of unity.
Visit Anthropology at Suite 101 again next week for more on this topic. If you have any questions or comments related to this topic or any of the other topics in Anthropology at Suite 101 Email me or post in our discussion forum.
References
John Monaghan & Peter Just (2000). Social and Cultural Anthropology. A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press
