Functionalist theory of religion Assess the view of functionalists that religion serves to reinforce social integration. Functionalists see society as like an organism‚ with basic needs that it must meet to survive. They suggest that each institution performs certain functions to maintain the social system by meeting a need. Society’s most basic need is for social order and solidarity as they believes social solidarity is necessary for society to hold together as without it‚ individual selfishness
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believes that society has a set of shared values and beliefs. Durkheim was the 1st functionalist to develop the idea that religious institutions play a central part in creating and maintaining value consensus‚ order and solidarity. The anthropologist‚ Malinowski‚ built on Durkheim’s idea and expanded with his own ideas. The functionalists‚ Parsons and Bellah later added their own ideas. For Durkheim‚ the key feature of religion is a fundamental distinction between the sacred and the profane that are
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Malinowski was an Anthropologist who studied the Trobriand Island. He observed that when fisher men who lived on the inner lagoon‚ where fishing was less dangerous‚ tended to follow different rituals from those who lived on the outer lagoons or the open sea. In the rituals of the latter‚ the desire to appropriate the forces of the unknown waters was far more prominent than among those who lived on the safe lagoons (Pearson‚ 1974). According to Malinowski‚ the practices by the Islanders empowered
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communities apart and posing a threat to social stability. PARA 2: * Functionalist agree: Malinowski – religion performs psychological functions‚ provides explanations and comport in situations of uncertainty e.g in life crisis such as Death * Religion fulfils a need for security and relieves situations of emotional stress which could otherwise threaten social stability. * Trobriand Islanders use rituals such as ‘canoe magic’ when ocean fishing to ensure safety on a dangerous task.
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ball player and an anthropology student. It was shortly after the end of one baseball game Gmelch took an anthropology course called Magic‚ religion‚ and witchcraft. As he was in class listing to the professor describe the magic rituals of the Trobriand Islanders. It had occurred to Gmelch that these so called people did wasn’t all that different from what his teammates did for good luck and confidence at the ball park. Routines and rituals were the most common way player’s attempt to reduce their feelings
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What was the significance of Malinowski ’s Discussion of the Kula? It is widely accepted that Malinowski was the founder of true anthropological fieldwork and this is a view shared by many anthropologists. An example of one such anthropologist was Adam Kuper. In 1973 Kuper undertook the writing of an analysis of the complete history of social anthropology in which he speaks comparatively highly of Malinowski. "Malinowski has a strong claim to being founder of the profession of social anthropology
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in the landscape of modern anthropological fieldwork? A primary objective of the modern ethnographer is to glean insights into the ways people relate to and interact with one another and the world around them. Through participant-observation‚ Malinowski (1922) offered a valuable tool with which to uncover these insights and understandings‚ the ethnographer. The ethnographer as research tool has become the basis of much modern anthropological research. As a method‚ it was a radical departure from
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’d be afraid to change anything. As long as I ’m winning‚ I do everything the same." Trobriand Islanders‚ according to anthropologist Bronislaw Malinowski‚ felt the same way about their fishing magic. Among the Trobrianders‚ fishing took two forms: in the inner lagoon where fish were plentiful and there was little danger‚ and on the open sea where fishing was dangerous and yields varied widely. Malinowski found that magic was not used in lagoon fishing‚ where men could rely solely on their knowledge
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“Assess the Functionalist view that religion benefits both society as a whole and it’s individual members.” According to research carried out by sociologists‚ almost 90% of the world population follow a religion. There are numerous theories that attempt to explain the role of religion in our lives. The Functionalist outlook is a consensus perspective that sees religion performing positive functions for society as a
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http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/gift [accessed: 4 December 2013]. It is this definition that has found itself at the centre of anthropological debate. Bronislaw Malinowski first coined the term ‘pure gift’ whilst conducting his ethnographic research in the Trobriand Islands. A ‘pure gift’ according to Malinowski was ‘an act in which an individual gives an object or renders a service without expecting a return’ (1922: 176). This was heavily criticised by revolutionary theorist Marcel
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