If Emile Durkheim were alive today, what would he likely conclude about our consumerist society?
A) Too few shopping choices leave us dissatisfied.
B) High prices are the root cause of dissatisfaction in society.
C) Limitless desire for goods leaves us dissatisfied.
D) Our limitless material desires are a way for us to be integrated.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Durkheim believed that social integration and cohesion were important for a healthy society. He also believed that individuals had unlimited desires and that society needed to regulate these desires through institutions and norms. In a consumerist society, where the focus is on material possessions and the endless pursuit of consumption, the desire for goods becomes insatiable and can lead to feelings of dissatisfaction and even anomie, a state of normlessness and disorientation. Therefore, Durkheim would likely conclude that our limitless desire for goods leaves us dissatisfied.

If Emile Durkheim Were Alive Today, What Would He Likely