24 h 45 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the sacred power people worship is the force of their own community?
In The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life, Émile Durkheim asks what religion is and why it binds people together. He turns to reports about Aboriginal clans in Australia, examining the totems that organize their sacred life. His aim is to find the shared elements of religion beneath its many forms.
Durkheim follows the links between sacred emblems, souls, spirits and collective rites. He argues that religion expresses the power of the group, then carries that argument into the way people think. Even ideas of time, space and cause, he claims, have roots in social life. The stakes reach beyond belief to the foundations of thought.
What you’ll discover
- The sacred beyond gods Explore why Durkheim starts with the sacred rather than belief in supernatural beings.
- A clan's sacred emblem See how plants and animals become totems within the clan life Durkheim describes.
- The force of gathering Follow his account of how shared rites renew a group's sense of itself.
- Souls and social life Trace his argument that ideas of the soul grow from collective religious life.
- The roots of reason Consider his bold claim that basic categories of thought arise from social life.
Who will love it
For readers curious about why rituals bind people together, and students of sociology, anthropology and religion who enjoy exploring sacred symbols, ceremonies and the life of groups.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Define religion by the sacred, not gods
- Older theories of religion fall short
- Study the simplest society to find essentials
- Totemism ties each clan to a sacred emblem
- The sacred force is the clan itself
- Souls and spirits grow from social life
- Rites renew the group through shared fervor
- Logic and science grow out of religion
- The theory has been praised and challenged
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 24 h 45 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 6 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Le forme elementari della vita religiosa in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Le forme elementari della vita religiosa
by Émile Durkheim · 1912
Durkheim follows Australian clans and their totems to explore how rituals bind people and give symbols sacred power.
ChallengingOver 20 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
In short
What if the gods people pray to are really a picture of the people praying? In 1912 the French sociologist Émile Durkheim asks a blunt question.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Define religion by the sacred, not gods
Durkheim begins by clearing away a common idea. Many people think religion means belief in a god. But some great religions, such as early Buddhism, have no god at the centre. So he builds his definition on a split in the world between the sacred and the profane.
Sacred things are set apart and forbidden. They can be a rock, a tree, a word or a person. What makes them sacred is the respect people give them. The profane is the ordinary business of daily life.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Le forme elementari della vita religiosa
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life about?
It is a study of the origins and nature of religion. Durkheim examines Aboriginal totemism in Australia and argues that religion expresses the life of society, so the sacred is the group's own power seen through symbols.
What does Durkheim mean by sacred and profane?
The sacred means things set apart and forbidden, treated with special respect. The profane is ordinary daily life. Durkheim says all religions divide the world this way, and that any object can become sacred.
What is collective effervescence?
It is the surge of shared energy and emotion that people feel when they gather for a ceremony. Durkheim says this feeling gives rise to the sense of a higher power and renews the bonds of the group.
The author
Émile Durkheim
1858–1917 · French sociologist
Émile Durkheim was a French sociologist born in Épinal in 1858. He taught in Bordeaux and later in Paris, where he died in 1917. His books include The Division of Labour in Society (1893), Suicide (1897), and The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life (1912).
More like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
