Agatha Christie Biography :: essays research papers

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller Christy (September 15, 1890 - January 12, 1976), was a British crime fiction writer. Christy published over eighty books and other works, mainly whodunits. While her work is not considered part of the literary canon, she is a major figure in detective fiction. In particular, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is noted for its use of narrative and its twist on the established genre. Most of her books and short stories have been filmed, some many times over (Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, 4.50 from Paddington). The BBC has made television versions of most of the Poirot and Marple stories. She also used the pen name Mary Westmacott for romantic novels. She was married to Sir Max Mallowan, a British archaeologist, which contributed background to several of her novels set in the Middle East. Other novels were set in Torquay, Devon, where she was born. During World War I she worked as a pharmacist, a job that also influenced her work: many of the murders in her books are carried out with poison. In December 1926 she disappeared for eleven days and caused quite a storm in the press. Opinions are still divided as to whether this was a publicity stunt or an emotional breakdown. Famous characters include Hercule Poirot and Jane Marple. Her stage play The Mousetrap holds the record for the longest run ever in London, opening in London in November 1952 and still running after 50 years and more than 20,000 performances. Sir Richard Attenborough, who was in the original production, participated in an anniversary performance: "It lasted so long because it is a bloody good play. Agatha Christy is very, very clever indeed." Two of her novels were written at the height of her career, but held back until after her death: they were the last cases of Poirot and Miss Marple. Agatha Christie Biography :: essays research papers Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller Christy (September 15, 1890 - January 12, 1976), was a British crime fiction writer. Christy published over eighty books and other works, mainly whodunits. While her work is not considered part of the literary canon, she is a major figure in detective fiction. In particular, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is noted for its use of narrative and its twist on the established genre. Most of her books and short stories have been filmed, some many times over (Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, 4.50 from Paddington). The BBC has made television versions of most of the Poirot and Marple stories. She also used the pen name Mary Westmacott for romantic novels. She was married to Sir Max Mallowan, a British archaeologist, which contributed background to several of her novels set in the Middle East. Other novels were set in Torquay, Devon, where she was born. During World War I she worked as a pharmacist, a job that also influenced her work: many of the murders in her books are carried out with poison. In December 1926 she disappeared for eleven days and caused quite a storm in the press. Opinions are still divided as to whether this was a publicity stunt or an emotional breakdown. Famous characters include Hercule Poirot and Jane Marple. Her stage play The Mousetrap holds the record for the longest run ever in London, opening in London in November 1952 and still running after 50 years and more than 20,000 performances. Sir Richard Attenborough, who was in the original production, participated in an anniversary performance: "It lasted so long because it is a bloody good play. Agatha Christy is very, very clever indeed." Two of her novels were written at the height of her career, but held back until after her death: they were the last cases of Poirot and Miss Marple.

Comedy in Educating Rita

Aristotle said that comedy is an imitation of inferior people'. How far do you think that this applies to the character of Rata in the play ‘Educating Rata? Educating Rata Is a play that uses the colloquialism of the mall protagonist, Rata, to create the comedy element for the audience when she Is being tutored by Frank, an untypical university lecturer who works In the setting of sass's northern England. In interpreting the characteristics of Rata, it can be identified that comedy is indeed an imitation of inferior people as highlighted by Aristotle who seemed to signify the inferior of society as those who weren't of royal or noble birth.Including Rata, the two main protagonists of this play could be classed as inferior because of them not belonging where they should. As Frank is a middle class university lecturer, he should be considered a financially comfortable and sophisticated man due to his social class. Educated people of his social class were typically expected to vis it the theatre and enjoy sports. They were also expected to watch the BBC, the comment ‘It's all BBC with you Isn't It? ‘ portrays Rite's Idea of Franks class and the typical actively f his class.As Frank has a problem with alcoholism, he Sins the normal middle-class lecturer; he Is Instead used to expose the deterioration he sees within the education system of England at this time. Russell uses Franks alcoholism to bring out the comedy in the first act of the play. Franks alcoholism is humorous to the audience because of it being so unexpected due to his class and career. In Act One, Frank recites famous classical authors before finding his alcohol, Where the hell..?Eliot? No. ‘E'. ‘E'. Dickens. ‘ This portrays his apparent loathing for the education system by sing the literature on his bookshelf to hide his alcohol, but also shows the depth of his alcohol problem because of him having to conceal it. He does this by the mocking of classical literary wo rks and he also mocks the students within the education system when discussing the window in his room, Frank says ‘l sometimes get an urge to throw something out of It†¦ A student usually.This portrays his distaste for his career and this problem separates him from the rest of his social class, It therefore classes him as someone who Is Inferior. He could also be considered Inferior because f his aversion to the education system and this causes him to again be different from a normal academic figure from sass's England. Rite's character has more than one dimension to the contemporary audience. Although the majority of the audience watching this play would have been middle class, they would admire Rata due to her level of determination to gain an education.This admiration could come from her being a female and the rise of feminism in the sass's, the popularity of plays such as ‘Top Girls' by Carry Churchill which had many feminist ideals within it could be linked to aspects of Rite's character. Throughout the first act of the play the comedy elements come from Rite's misinterpretations. This enhances her working class mind- set to the audience and gives them more of an analysis of the comedy within Rata, due to her Interpretations and how they differ from Frank.One of these misinterpretations Is when Frank shows her a picture on the wall that she observes by saying, ‘look at those its', whereas Frank believes it to be beautiful piece of need for a choice within working class life. She is desperate to escape from the normal class of her social group and doesn't feel like she belongs there. She goes against her husband to gain what she wants and consequently takes power over her own life, ‘he can burn all me books but he can't burn what's up here' shows this to the audience.This choice she will gain separates her from what Aristotle considered inferior. As Rata progresses to better herself, she also progresses to become more like Fran k and middle class, but by the end probably doesn't belong there either, ‘I'm a freak signifies her opinion of herself. Rata will never belong in either class, as she is too educated for her own class but her lack of an ascribed status creates a difference between her and the middle class.This creates empathy from the audience as she has no real identity; she is inferior in both classes and will never be considered superior. The determination of Rata to progress beyond her own class now changes the mockery once used by the audience towards her character into awe and admiration. Rite's lack of real identity is also signified as she changes her name to match that of an author before we meet her in Act One. She is borrowing someone else's identity because her own identity is so confused by her not knowing where she belongs.Her choice of author to correct her working class name, ‘Rata Mae Brown' also creates comedy and a mockery of her class because of this author not being renowned at all in terms of literary status. This again signifies her lack of belonging within the middle class. In Act Two, Frank himself mocks her for her lack of known identity, What is it now then? Virginia? Or Charlotte? Or Jane? Or Emily? This represents the breakdown of their relationship due to Rite's new status. This significance of Rata having no identity could imply Rata is inferior in her own head, ‘I'm a freak, but is still not inferior to the audience.Elder Olson said that ‘comedy resides not in events but in the view taken of them'. This suggests that comedy isn't created through the events that occur but in the audience's perception of these events. This applies when Rata quits smoking, possibly to improve her health, whilst bettering her education. This shows us how serious her intent is on bettering her life and her determination for this and this makes us view her as being superior in terms of strength and determination.However, in Act Two, after she h as gained an insight into academic education through summer school, Rata takes up smoking again, but due to her rise in self-confidence and class, it now seems like a sophisticated element of middle class life. Smoking no longer seems a habit of the working class, ‘She is wrapped in a large winter coat. She lights a cigarette'. Rite's change in clothing and the cigarette portray the change in her. The audience's perception of Rata has now changed and signifies her superiority to her former self.This indicates to me that she is not an inferior character in this play. As this play is set in the sass's, the issues presented were more acceptable than they are to a modern day audience. One of these issues is the controlling relationship between Rata and her husband, Denny. Although we never actually meet Denny, the audience can infer his personality wrought Rite's description. While Rata wants to gain an education, Denny wants to settle down and start a family, ‘l told him I' d only have a baby when I had choice'.To Rata, this ‘choice' is all that matters, and with Denny controlling her, this choice is more limited than ever before. This type of relationship was not uncommon in the role, especially in working class British society. This means that an audience of that time would find this more socially acceptable, but looking at it from a current perspective, this would be considered wrong due to society being perceived as more equal now. This is also similar with the issue of Franks alcoholism, as this was more accepted then, now it is considered a social problem within society.The issues presented by Rata show her not to be an inferior character as she removes herself from her controlling marriage and her determination to gain a ‘choice' culminates in success. Using a different viewpoint, I believe Rata completely goes against Aristotle theory of comedy being an imitation of inferior people. The characterization of Rata is not that of someon e that is inferior, but is in fact someone who is elevated above the inferior but is not yet considered superior. Her willpower to improve herself does not follow that of someone who would be classed as inferior.The fact she is ‘on the pill again' when her husband wants to settle down and start a family shows how independent and strong she is as a woman and she does not allow herself to be controlled. I think an audience at the time the play was written would have admired her need to take control of her own life, even though they would be largely middle class. At the time of the play being written, Margaret Thatcher had Just come into power and she spoke of attaining more than you were expected to achieve. I think Hess ideals of Margaret Thatcher may have inspired Wily Russell when creating the protagonist, Rata.Through analyzing Aristotle theory, I can deduct that the character of Rata is not inferior. In fact I think the determination shown by Rata in the play, leads me to b elieve that she would be considered superior to a contemporary audience as she elevates herself not only above her own class but also above the middle class through her necessity to better herself. She does not succumb to the traits classically portrayed by the middle class and therefore I feel that claiming her as inferior is not doing Rite's emotion and character Justice.

The Value of Believing You Get What You Pay For

The Value of Believing You Get What You Pay For Choosing Value Last week I received a call from a marketing executive in Switzerland who wanted assistance with an important cover letter. He had found me on LinkedIn and chosen my company over three others. With excitement in his voice, he explained to me that as a marketer, he was fascinated by his own behavior in deciding upon The Essay Expert: He chose us because we were the most expensive company. In a similar phenomenon, for many months I had been frustrated that people were landing on my professional bio page and calling me about the service, but not purchasing. I considered removing bios from my offerings, but first decided to try raising my rates. Lo and behold, people started buying bios more often! I got the sense that they trusted they would get a better product and perhaps something they couldn’t write themselves. Of course, people do not always choose to buy the most expensive option in front of them. Different consumers have different budgets, and some people simply can’t afford to purchase more pricey goods and services. In fact, the same week I was contacted by the client from Switzerland, I also heard from a client who wanted to pay $500 for services that would normally go for $1700 according to my normal pricing. He simply could not afford my rates. And although I sympathized with his situation, I was not able to work with him and keep within my business model. Pricing Psychology If it’s true that â€Å"you get what you pay for,† expectations are set by price, and regardless of the actual product or service delivered, a consumer will value it according to what he or she paid for it. Studies have shown that people expect a positive correlation between price and quality (e.g., Rao and Monroe, 1989). In a 2008 study about wine enjoyment by Goldstein et. al., consumers who did not know the price of the wine they were drinking did not like more expensive wine better; but when they were told they were drinking a more expensive wine, they gave the wine higher ratings. It seems our brains actually play tricks on us to make us appreciate things more when we pay more money for them! This doesn’t mean that we can charge high prices and then deliver a shoddy result. If someone pays a high price for something and is disappointed, she might be even more upset than if she had paid less- although not necessarily! I have learned that people looking for a deal are often more demanding than those willing to pay for value. Choosing Clients My Swiss client was clearly guided by the phenomenon of expecting value for value. And he knew the value he wanted: the confidence that would come from having a clearly written, persuasive letter, in solid English, stating his commitment and qualifications for transitioning from the corporate to the non-profit world. He was my ideal client. He requested to pay a rush fee for a quick turnaround. He partnered with us fully in the project. And when we delivered the letter, he told us we had exceeded his expectations. In return, I was happy and willing to go the extra mile for him and give him the modifications he needed at 11pm U.S. Central time on a Friday night. He has already purchased additional services. The price-averse potential client, on the other hand, was not my ideal client. He presented with a complex situation that would have required more work than the average executive service, yet even at $1700 he would have been paying mid-level rates. Having been out of work for a year, I believe he was looking for a result that I could not guarantee: a job. For him, I believe confidence in putting his best foot forward might not have been enough, and I was concerned that he might come back asking for a refund of his $500. Every business owner when setting pricing must make a decision about what type of clients they want to target: Do you want those who are looking for a deal and will say yes because you offer one? Or those who want to pay for value and will appreciate your products and services in part because they paid top dollar for them? There is no right answer to which type of client to attract, but for me, I choose the latter. That’s my win-win and I am prepared to live up to my value proposition.

Social Facts Essays

Social Facts Essays Social Facts Essay Social Facts Essay A. Social Facts Durkheim defined social facts as things external to, and coercive of, the actor. These are created from collective forces and do not emanate from the individual (Hadden, p. 104). While they may not seem to be observable, social facts are things, and are to be studied empirically, not philosophically (Ritzer, p. 78). They cannot be deduced from pure reason or thought, but require a study of history and society in order to observe their effects and understand the nature of these social facts. In The Rules of Sociological Method, Durkheim begins by noting features such as the following (quote 3): Social Facts. When I fulfil my obligations as brother, husband, or citizen, when I execute my contracts, I perform duties which are defined, externally to myself and my acts, in law and in custom. Even if they conform to my own sentiments and I feel their reality subjectively, such reality is still objective, for I did not create them; I merely inherited them through my education. (Rules, p. 1). As examples of social facts, Durkheim cites religious beliefs, currency used to undertake transactions, and factors such as the practices followed in my profession (Rules, p. 2). These types of conduct or thought are not only external to the individual but are, moreover, endowed with coercive power, by virtue of which they impose themselves upon him, independent of his individual will. (Rules, p. 2). While obligations, values, attitudes, and beliefs may appear to be individual, Durkheim argues that these social facts exist at the level of society as a whole, arising from social relationships and human association. They exist as a result of social interactions and historical developments over long periods of time, and come from varying collective representations and diverse forms of social organization (Hadden, p. 04). As individuals who are born and raised in a society, these social facts are learned (through socialization) and generally accepted, but the individual has nothing to do with establishing these. While society is composed of individuals, society is not just the sum of individuals, and these facts exist at the level of society, not at the individua l level. As such, these social facts do exist, they are the social reality of society, a reality that constitutes the proper study of sociology (Cuff et al. , p. 33). The study of social facts is the distinct object or subject matter of sociology (Hadden, p. 105). Durkheim istinguishes social facts from psychological, biological, or economic facts by noting that these are social and rooted in group sentiments and values. At the same time, he distinguishes the study of social facts from philosophy by noting that the real effects of social facts are manifested in external indicators of sentiments such as religious doctrines, laws, moral codes (Hadden, p. 105) and these effects can be observed and studied by the sociologist. The study of social facts is thus a large part of the study of sociology. In order to do this, the sociologist must rid themselves of preconceptions (Hadden, p. 07) and undertake objective study which can focus on objective, external indicators such as religious do ctrines or laws (Hadden, p. 107). Each social fact is real, something that is constraining on the individual and external to the actor. The social fact is not just in the mind of the individual – that is, these facts are more than psychological facts. That these exist in society as a whole, over time, and sometimes across societies, provides some proof of this. At the same time they are in the minds of individuals so they are also mental states. Ritzer notes that social facts can be considered to be mental phenomena that are external to and coercive of psychological facts, such as human instincts. The individual mental state could be considered to intervene between social fact and action (Ritzer, p. 105). Durkheim may not have provided a sufficient analysis of the assumptions underlying, or the characteristics of, these mental states. For Durkheim the study of sociology should be the study of social facts, attempting to find the causes of social facts and the functions of these social facts. Social facts regulate human social action and act as constraints over individual behaviour and action. They may be enforced with law, with clearly defined penalties associated with violation of the sentiments and values of the group. Sanctions may be associated with social facts, for example as in religion, where resistance may result in disapproval from others or from spiritual leaders. Individuals may be unaware of social facts and generally accept them. In this case, individuals may accept the values and codes of society and accept them as their own. Two types of social facts are material and non-material social facts. Material social facts are features of society such as social structures and institutions. These could be the system of law, the economy, church and many aspects of religion, the state, and educational institutions and structures. They could also include features such as channels of communication, urban structures, and population distribution. While these are important for understanding the structures and form of interaction in any society, it is nonmaterial social facts that constitute the main subject of study of sociology. Nonmaterial social facts are social facts which do not have a material reality. They consist of features such as norms, values, and systems of morality. Some contemporary examples are the norm of the one to three child family, the positive values associated with family structures, and the negative associations connected to aggression and anger. In Durkheims terminology, some of these nonmaterial social facts are morality, collective consciousness, and social currents. An example of the latter is Durkheims analysis of suicide. Social facts can also be divided into normal and pathological social facts (Hadden, pp. 08-9). Normal social facts are the most widely distributed and useful social facts, assisting in the maintenance of society and social life. Pathological social facts are those that we might associate with social problems and ills of various types. Suicide is one example of this, where social facts ought to be different. For Durkheim, the much greater frequency of the normal is proof of the superiority of the normal. Durkheim later modified the notion of a single collective consciousness, and adopted the view that there were collective representations as part of specific states of substrata of the collective. That is, there may be different norms and values for different groups within society. These collective representations are also social facts because they are in the consciousness of some collective and are not reducible to individual consciousnesses (Ritzer, p. 87). The social structures, institutions, norms and values that have become part of the study of sociology can be derived from Durkheims approach, and today there is little difficulty distinguishing sociology from psychology. B. Suicide After Durkheim wrote The Rules of Sociological Method, he tackled the subject of suicide as an example of how a sociologist can study a subject that seems extremely personal, with no social aspect to it – even being anti-social. It could be argued that suicide is such a personal act that it involves only personal psychology and purely individual thought processes. Durkheims aim was not to explain or predict an individual tendency to suicide, but to explain one type of nonmaterial social facts, social currents. Social currents are characteristics of society, but may not have the permanence and stability that some parts of collective consciousness or collective representation have. They may be associated with movements such as enthusiasm, indignation, and pity. (Ritzer, p. 87). Hadden notes that Durkheim wished to show that sociological factors were capable of explaining much about such anti-social phenomena (Hadden, p. 109). In the case of suicide, these social currents are expressed as suicide rates, rates that differ among societies, and among different groups in society. These rates show regularities over time, with changes in the rates often occurring at similar times in different societies. Thus these rates can be said to be social facts (or at least the statistical representation of social facts) in the sense that they are not just personal, but are societal characteristics. This can be seen in the following quote (quote 12): Suicide Rates as Social Facts. At each moment of its history, therefore, each society has a definite aptitude for suicide. The relative intensity of this aptitude is measured by taking the proportion between the total number of voluntary deaths and the population of every age and sex. We will call this numerical datum the rate of mortality through suicide, characteristic of the society under consideration. The suicide-rate is therefore a factual order, unified and definite, as is shown by both its permanence and its variability. For this permanence would be inexplicable if it were not the result of a group of distinct characteristics, solidary with one another, and simultaneously effective in spite of different attendant circumstances; and this variability proves the concrete and individual quality of these same characteristics, since they vary with the individual character of society itself. In short, these statistical data express the suicidal tendency with which each society is collectively afflicted. Each society is predisposed to contribute a definite quota of voluntary deaths. This predisposition may therefore be the subject of a special study belonging to sociology. (Suicide, pp. 48, 51). Durkheim takes up the analysis of suicide in a very quantitative and statistical manner. While he did not have available to him very precise or complete data or sophisticated statistical techniques, his method is exemplary in showing how to test hypotheses, reject incorrect explanations for suicide, sort through a great variety of ossible explanations, and attempt to control for extraneous factors. Some of the factors that others had used to explain suicide were heredity, climate, race, individual psychopathic states (mental illness), and imitation. As an example of Durkheims method, consider how he analyzes cosmic factors, such as weather or season. Durkheim (Suicide, p. 107) no tes that in all countries suicide is greater in the summer months, that no country is an exception to this, and that the proportion of suicides in the six warmer months to the six colder months is very similar in each country. Durkheim notes that this has led some commentators to say the heat increases the excitability of the nervous system (Suicide, p. 108). But suicide may result from depression as much as from over-excitement, and heat cannot possibly act the same way on both causes. Further, a closer analysis by Durkheim considers temperature variations and shows that while suicides increase in number as temperature increases, suicides reach a peak before the temperature does. In addition, if temperature is a cause of suicide, warm countries might be expected to have more suicides than cold countries, but the opposite tends to be the case. A related explanation that Durkheim considers is that great changes in temperature are associated with suicide, but again he finds that there is no correlation between suicide rates and the fact of temperature change. Rather, the causes must be in some factor that has continuity over time. He then notes that the rates are more closely connected to the length of day, with suicides increasing as the days grow longer, and decreasing in number as the length of day declines. But it is not the sun itself which is the cause, because at noontime there are fewer suicides than at other times of the day. What Durkheim finds is that the factors associated with higher numbers of suicides must be those that relate to the time when social life is at its height (Suicide, p. 119). The time of day, the day of week, the season of the year, and so on, are not in themselves the reason for the changes in the number of suicides. Rather, the times when social life and interaction among people are greater, are also those associated with increased suicide. Durkheim concludes this section by saying (quote 13): Four Types of Suicide The manner in which social integration and regulation work can be better seen by examining the four fold classification of suicides that Durkheim developed. Durkheim ends his discussion of the organic-psychic and physical environmental factors by concluding that they cannot explain each social group[s] specific tendency to suicide. (Suicide, p. 145). By eliminating other explanations, Durkheim claims that these tendencies must depend on social causes and must be collective phenomena. The key to each type is a social factor, with the degrees of integration and regulation into society being either too high or too low. (The following discussion is drawn from Ritzer, pp. 90 ff. ). 1. Egoistic Suicide. This is the type of suicide that occurs where the degree of social integration is low, and there is a sense of meaningless among individuals. In traditional societies, with mechanical solidarity, this is not likely to be the cause of suicide. There the strong collective consciousness gives people a broad sense of meaning to their lives. Within modern society, the weaker collective consciousness means that people may not see the same meaning in their lives, and unrestrained pursuit of individual interests may lead to strong dissatisfaction. One of the results of this can be suicide. Individuals who are strongly integrated into a family structure, a religious group, or some other type of integrative group are less likely to encounter these problems, and that explains the lower suicide rates among them. The factors leading to egoistic suicide can be social currents such as depression and disillusionment. For Durkheim, these are social forces or social facts, even though it is the depressed or melancholy individual who takes his or her life voluntarily. Actors are never free of the force of the collectivity: However individualized a man may be, there is always something collective remaining – the very depression and melancholy resulting from this same exaggerated individualism. Also, on p. 214 of Suicide, Durkheim says Thence are formed currents of depression and disillusionment emanating from no particular individual but expressing societys state of disillusionment. Durkheim notes that the bond attaching man to life relaxes because that attaching him to society is itself slack. The individual yields to the slightest shock of circumstance because the state of society has made him a ready prey to suicide. (Suicide, pp. 214-215). 2. Altruistic Suicide. This is the type of suicide that occurs when integration is too great, the collective consciousness too strong, and the indivi dual is forced into committing suicide. (Ritzer, p. 91). Integration may not be the direct cause of suicide here, but the social currents that go along with this very high degree of integration can lead to this. The followers of Jim Jones of the People’s Temple or the members of the Solar Temple are an example of this, as are ritual suicides in Japan. Ritzer notes that some may feel it is their duty to commit suicide. (p. 91). Examples in primitive society cited by Durkheim are suicides of those who are old and sick, suicides of women following the death of their husband, and suicides of followers after the death of a chief. According to Durkheim this type of suicide may actually springs from hope, for it depends on the belief in beautiful perspectives beyond this life. 3. Anomic Suicide. Anomie or anomy come from the Greek meaning lawlessness. Nomos means usage, custom, or law and nemein means to distribute. Anomy thus is social instability resulting from breakdown of standards and values. (Websters Dictionary). This is a type of suicide related to too low a degree of regulation, or external constraint on people. As with the anomic division of labour, this can occur when the normal form of the division of labour is disrupted, and the collectivity is temporarily incapable of exercising its authority over individuals. (Ritzer, p. 92). This can occur either during periods associated with economic depression (stock market crash of the 1930s) or over-rapid economic expansion. New situations with few norms, the regulative effect of structures is weakened, and the individual may feel rootless. In this situation, an individual may be subject to anomic social currents. People that are freed from constraints become slaves to their passions, and as a result, according to Durkheims view, commit a wide range of destructive acts, including killing themselves in greater numbers than they ordinarily would. (Ritzer, p. , 92). In addition to economic anomie, Durkheim also spends time examining domestic anomie. For example, suicides of family members may occur after the death of a husband or wife. 4. Fatalistic Suicide. When regulation is too strong, Durkheim considers the possibility that persons with futures pitilessly blocked and passions v iolently choked by oppressive discipline may see no way out. The individual sees no possible manner in which their lives can be improved, and when in a state of melancholy, may be subject to social currents of fatalistic suicide. Summary. Durkheims analysis of suicide shows the manner n which the social as opposed to the psychological and biological can be emphasized, and how it results in some useful ways of analyzing the actions of individuals. Suicide rates as expressions of social currents are social facts that affect societies and individuals within those societies. The study of psychology is still useful in attempting to determine individual motives and the mann er in which the specific circumstances can lead to an individual deciding to voluntarily end their life. But an analysis of these circumstances should be set within the context of the social currents to which that individual is subject. The method of analysis of Durkheim should prove useful even today. In terms of suicide, the social causes are now well recognized, and any analysis of suicide would have to include these. Some combination of egoistic, anomic, and fatalistic types of suicide may help explain and understand this phenomenon. More generally, the method of Suicide is exemplary in providing researchers with a means of understanding the social factors that are associated with particular phenomena. Durkheim examines patterns on the data in an attempt to determine how social factors can play a role in explaining these phenomena. This might be applied to sociobiological arguments today. The trends themselves are not the cause, but indicative of a cause, a social explanation has to be found. C. Conclusions about Durkheim 1. Contributions a. Social Facts and Social Aspects. These are real things that do affect people. He had a strong structural view of society, and the manner in which each of us is influenced by these social facts and how we must fit into these. Durkheim attempted to see a role for the social as distinguished from the economic, psychological and biological. This can be seen in his view of the social influences on suicide rates, where he takes a wide variety of factors and considers their influence on the tendency or aptitude for suicide. The effect of each of these factors is not a simple connection between the factor and the tendency to suicide, but must be mediated by social factors. In particular, the social factors that he identified were the degree of integration and the degree of regulation. For modern theories of sociobiology, and the influence of genetics, Durkheims approach could prove a useful counter. References Cuff, E. C. , W. W. Sharrock and D. W. Francis, Perspectives in Sociology, third edition, London, Routledge, 1992. HM66 P36 1984 Durkheim, Emile, The Division of Labor in Society, New York, The Free Press, 1933. Referred to in notes as Division. HD 51 D98 Durkheim, Emile, The Rules of Sociological Method, New York, The Free Press, 1938. Referred to in notes as Rules. HM 24 D962 Durkheim, Emile, Suicide: A Study in Sociology, New York, The Free Press, 1951. Referred to in notes as Suicide. HV 6545 D812 Giddens, Anthony, Capitalism and Modern Social Theory: An Analysis of the Writings of Marx, Durkheim and Max Weber, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1971. HM19 G53. Ritzer, George, Sociological Theory, third edition, New York, McGraw-Hill, 1992. HM24 R4938. Social Explanation. If voluntary deaths increase from January to July, it is not because heat disturbs the organism, but because social life is more intense. To be sure, this greater intensity derives from the greater ease of development of social life in the Summer than in the Winter, owing to the suns position , the state of the atmosphere, etc. But the physical environment does not stimulate it directly; above all, it has no effect on the progression of suicide. The latter depends on social conditions. Suicide, pp. 121-122). While this is not a proof or determination of what causes suicide yet, Durkheim notes that the causes must relate to collective life and must be such that these time factors can be incorporated into an explanation. But the explanation must be social in nature, and cannot be simply related to natural factors, these natural factors must work socially, and affe ct some social aspects which are related to suicide. Note that Durkheim s method here is very empirical, and he searches through various sorts of data and evidence to find factors associated with suicide. But the explanation is not simply a relation between these data and suicides. Rather he is searching for social causes or conditions that are expressed through these. That is, he uses data to discover patterns, but the patterns themselves are not the cause of the phenomenon. Rather the cause is social, and the observed, empirical patterns constitute a means of finding underlying causes. Another factor that Durkheim considers is religion. While he does find that religion is associated with suicide, in the sense that Protestant countries and regions have higher suicide rates than do Catholic ones, religious doctrines are not an important factor in explaining these differences. That is, suicide is condemned more or less equally in each religion, and doctrinal statements concerning suicide are all negative. If there is a difference between the two religions with respect to suicide rates, it must be in some aspect of social organization that differs between the two churches. But if this is the factor related to suicide, then it is the social organization that is the cause of the difference, not religion in itself. Giddens notes (p. 83) that Durkheim finds further proof of this in other factors related to social organization, that is, family structure. Where there is more integration in family structure, the suicides are lesser in number. Durkheim argues that the most important aspects of social organization and collective life for explaining differences in suicide rates are the degree of integration into and regulation by society. For Durkheim, integration is the degree to which collective sentiments are shared and regulation refers to the degree of external constraint on people. (Ritzer, p. 90). Catholicism is a more highly integrated religion than Protestantism, and it is in this that the difference in suicide rates is expressed. That is, it is not the religious doctrines themselves but the different social organization of the two religions. As Giddens notes (p. 83), degree of integration of family structure is related in the same way to suicides. Those in larger families are less likely to commit suicide, whereas those in smaller families, or single, are more likely. Over time, various social factors also make their influence felt. Durkheim notes that there was a decline in the number of suicides in all the European countries in 1848, a year of revolution and political change throughout Europe. Times of political crisis, war, and economic change are also associated with changes in the rate of suicide. Each of these great social movements could be considered to be examples of social currents that have widespread impact within and across societies. Ritzer (p. 89) notes that Durkheim was making two arguments. First, he argued that different collectivities have different collective consciousness or collective representation. These produce different social currents, and these lead to different suicide rates. By studying different groups and societies, some of these currents can be analyzed, and the effect of these on suicide can be determined. Second, changes in the collective consciousness lead to changes in social currents. These are then associated with changes in suicide rates (quote 14): Sociological Explanation. The conclusion from all these facts is that the social suicide-rate can be explained only sociologically. At any given moment the moral constitution of society established the contingent of voluntary deaths. There is, therefore, for each people a collective force of a definite amount of energy, impelling men to self-destruction. The victims acts which at first seem to express only his personal temperament are really the supplement and prolongation of a social condition which they express externally. Each social group really has a collective inclination for the act, quite its own, and the source of all individual inclination, rather than the result. It is made up of the currents of egoism, altruism or anomy running through the society under consideration with the tendencies to languorous melancholy, active renunciation or exasperated weariness derivative from these currents. These tendencies of the whole social body, by affecting individuals, cause them to commit suicide. The private experiences usually thought to be the proximate causes of suicide have only the influence borrowed from the victims moral predisposition, itself and echo of the moral state of society. (Suicide, pp. 299-300).

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