Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
skip to main |
skip to sidebar
This is a blog for a community of students in Mike Levien's sections of Sociology 101B: "Sociological Theory," in the Department of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley, Spring 2009.
Theory Rocks!
This is the informal blog spot for Mike Levien's section of Sociology 101B. For the rest of the semester, we'll use this blog to clarify the work(s) of Durkheim, Weber, Foucault, de Beauvoir, MacKinnon, and Collins. Feel free to endlessly post, and don't forget: Theory Rocks!
Followers
Blog Archive
-
▼
2009
(64)
-
▼
February
(24)
- Monty Python's understanding of sovereign power an...
- Durkheim and the prison system
- Memo #1
- Memo #1- Durkheim
- Memo #1
- Durkheim's Organic Solidarity in the ASUC
- Mechanical and Organic Solidarity
- Durkheim's Mechanical and Organic Solidarity
- MS and OS in education
- This essay discusses the difference between Mechan...
- The following discusses the difference in mechanic...
- Durkheim and illegal detention centers
- M and O Solidarity
- MS vs OS
- Mechanical Vs. Organic Solidarity
- Durkheim in the US education system
- Mechanical versus Organic Solidarity and their App...
- Durkheim, Solidarity and Teams
- Organic and Mechanical Solidarity in Maganda Magazine
- Organic Solidarity in Little House on the Prairie
- Mechanical Solidarity and Little House on the Prairie
- Durkheim TIA About Afterschool Tutoring Program by Me
- Durkheim, Solidarity, and the Men’s Story Project
- Daschle, Obama, and the thousand threads?
-
▼
February
(24)
For Durkheim two forms of solidarity exist, mechanical and organic solidarity; both can be applied to Homeland Security. The consciousness that takes precedence within the relations of individuals sets the two solidarities apart. Mechanical solidarity is found in the absence of the division of labor and is characterized by the likenesses of individuals. Individuals find themselves linking to each other because of their similarities. Therefore individual consciousness is reliant on the existing collective consciousness (84-85). These consciousnesses are enforced by repressive laws in society. These laws consist of punishments that are made public, passionately, and are organized (52). They serve to implement the collective consciousness of society. Here, the state defends, symbolizes, and embodies the collective consciousness of society (52). Unlike mechanical solidarity, organic solidarity has a different composition.
ReplyDeleteOrganic solidarity derives from the division of labor and therefore it is based on the complimentary differences of individuals. Each individual has their own unique consciousness; the collective consciousness is then a result of the amalgamation of consciousnesses. Hence, individual consciousness is greater than the collective consciousness (85). Restitutive laws follow organic solidarity. These laws, which are procedural, award to damage of consciousness. They restore and regulate interdependent relations found with in the division of labor. The judicial system operates these laws and therefore the state coordinates and regulates the functions of society through the division of labor (169-171). Both mechanical and organic solidarity are represented within Homeland security.
Homeland Security is based on the division of labor where organic solidarity is found within the workplace. For example when focusing on immigration, policies are made by head officials and it is the job of others—border patrol agents, officers, etc. — to enforce. There exists a collective consciousness within this department, protecting borders from illegal immigrants. The regulation of immigrants is upheld by the judiciary system, they decide quotas and policies that should be implemented. However, when they begin to enforce policies in society, mechanical solidarity becomes evident.
Mechanical solidarity becomes evident when immigrant policies become enforced. These policies are characterized by their organization, passion, and public display. Society is made aware of the executions of laws prohibiting the inhabitance of illegal immigrants. The efficiency of Homeland Security’s policy is attributed to the organization of laws. They have certain processes to follow when condemning an illegal immigrant. For example, the “Catch and Return” policy states that when an illegal immigrant is caught at the border, s/he will be detained until they can remove him from the country. Often times, when large amounts of illegal immigrants have been caught living inside the United States, it is broadcasted. This serves as a demonstration, to all individuals that the government is seeking to remove all illegal immigrants. Hence, setting fear into the hearts of the illegal immigrants. It becomes evident that both mechanical and organic solidarity exist in Homeland Security.