On Émile Durkheim's "The Elementary Forms of Religious Life" (1912)

In 1912, the French sociologist Emile Durkheim published The Elementary Forms of Religious Life. Centered around the experience of religion in tribal cultures, this masterpiece explores the nature of religion and its social function in society. When The Elementary Forms was first published it sparked controversy and heated discussion and has continued to provoke thoughtful engagement among scholars ever since. Steven Lukes is a Professor Emeritus at New York University and the author of Emile Durkheim: His Life and Work: A Historical and Critical Study.

Host: Schneur Zalman Newfield is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Borough of Manhattan Community College, City University of New York, and the author of Degrees of Separation: Identity Formation While Leaving Ultra-Orthodox Judaism (Temple University Press, 2020). Visit him online at ZalmanNewfield.com.