Structural Functionalism In American Culture

My thesis would be about Trying different roles and gender role-playing while the experimenting with one’s sexuality. “Exchanging Hats” by Elizabeth Bishop is a whimsical poem about experimenting with pushing gender dress to the limits of acceptability. Hats are customarily used to define a person’s role in society or profession. This poem uses that mantra to depict the different roles that people play, and the different hats they wear to emphasize those roles.

This past October an intersex U.S. Navy veteran, Dana Zzyym, gained national attention after they were denied a passport. Zzyym identifies as neither male nor female, so they were denied the right to a passport after refusing to select a gender box on the application. After the denial Zzyym filed a federal discrimination lawsuit on the grounds that it is a constitutional violation to force an intersex person to select a gender box. Their argument is that gender, or lack of thereof, has nothing to do with travel, so why should it restrict or force people to declare a gender marker they do not identify as. Zzyym’s case finally brings to light how significant two little boxes can truly be, especially for those who live their lives outside

In sociology, there are three theoretical perspectives; symbolic interactionism, functional analysis and conflict theory. The major point of symbolic interactionism is to use symbols to help understand how we as a society view the world, and how we communicate with one another. In functional analysis, the major point is to look at society as a whole, constructed of various parts, or groups, that all have their own function. Lastly, conflict theory is the opposite of functional analysis. In this perspective, society is viewed as different groups, each competing for power, or dominance.

Looking at society as a whole with individual units that work together to make society function efficiently is the structural functionalism concept. Each unit has a part and is describe as institutions such as family, religion, education, politics, economy and inequality. Because structural functionalism looks at social structure and patterns of behavior it is able to create values for society. As well as, distinguish between visible and suppressed problems within the social structures that may need to be addressed. For instance, homelessness is indication of dysfunction in structural functionalism system.

While Durkheim calls modern society a disconnective collectiveness conscience, because everyone depends on themselves. Durkheim called the progress from traditional to modern society a “natural evolutionary progression.” He

(Sociology.ie, 2014) Emile Durkheim (1798-1857) was a French sociologist, who was interested in the impact of the industrial revolution on how people behaved in society. Durkheim is known as one of the founding fathers of sociology, due to the large efforts he used to establish sociology as a science subject. This meaning, that you can analyse society using scientific analysis or “scientific fact”. Durkheim is well known for his theories relating to mechanical and organic solidarity. Mechanical Solidarity refers to the feeling of connectedness between different individuals due to similar religious beliefs, Work or education.

In other words, functionalists like Durkheim believed that for a society to survive, its various social processes must come together to meet the system’s needs. Functionalists implement Durkheim’s outlook of a unified social scheme with various elements having a function within


 Emile Durkheim was well-known for his views on the structure of society. He was interested in what was happening with society as a whole rather than an individuals specific actions. His theories were founded on the concept of social facts, defined as the norms, values, and structures of society for example; institutions, culture, beliefs, etc. which are external in nature to the individual

Emile Durkheim thought that society was multifaceted system of consistent and co-dependent parts that work together to maintain stability. One important thing that Durkheim believed held society together was social facts. He thought that social facts consisted of feeling, acting, and thinking externally from the person and coercive power over that person. These things could include social institutions, rules, values, and norms. They have control over an individual’s life.

Most fields of science rely on theories to explain centrally important issues, such as social phenomena, that have a wide range of applications. Sociologists attempt to describe human society though their theories, such as the structural-functionalism theory, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionalism. While the three theories attempt to describe how society functions the way it does, all three differ in their views of how humans are related to society and each other. In the structural-functionalism, the dominant view is that if the structures that exist are functional, then those structures should be preserved and maintained. Structure-functionalists tend focus on the interrelatedness to the social structures that make up society.

The Creation of Society Through the Lens of Durkheim and Rousseau There are various theories across the spectrum of the social sciences that address the birth of society. The focus of this essay will be on two French sociologists, Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Émile Durkheim who share different ideas of how the creation of society came about. Durkheim was a functionalist who has very fundamental views on the formation of society. Durkheim theorizes that society is natural and happens through shared experiences. He believes that society makes the individual “whole” by providing them with knowledge.

Structural Functional Theory Structural functional theory is a macro sociological theory that is based on the characteristics of structures, social patterns, social systems and institutions such as education, religion, leisure, media, economy and politics. If all these social institutions are organized and co-operate with one another around a set of core values functionalist theorists assume that the entire social system will function properly and efficiently. Society in structural functional theory has a view that it is an organized system of interrelated parts that are held together by shared values and established social arrangements that help maintain the system to be in a state of balance and equilibrium. Structural functional theory is a broad perspective in sociology and anthropology which sets out to interpret society as a structure with interrelated parts. Functionalism addresses society as a whole in terms of the function of its constituent elements; namely norms, customs, traditions and institutions (Vibha Desai, 2013).

Social fact can be defined as the norms, values, and structures of society. Durkheim believed that collective consciousness, values, and rules are essential for a functional society. His theories concentrate mainly

Émile Durkheim (1858–1917) believed that the social connections

Durkheim, thus wishes to be more scientific in his approach and wants to observe moral facts that are constantly changing to formulate sociological theories as opposed to just accepting a set of “ideal type” morals that were formed at a specific