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Burke-Bevis
Frances Burke-Bevis

SOC 301

Yan Shan

December 6, 2020

Emile Durkheim’s Suicide and its Impact on Understanding Violence in Modern Society

Emile Durkheim believed that individuals in a society form a collective consciousness to

create and maintain social solidarity, and it’s through social solidarity that Durkheim saw an

organization of individuals into a single system that effectively holds society together. However,

when individuals in society experience a certain degree of normlessness and lack of social

cohesion, they will reflect that change through their behavior and by defying the principles of

that society to establish new norms. Mass shootings are a common occurrence in the United

States and many people have experienced the levels of violence that they create and the wake of

confusion that comes after. In this essay, I will explore how mass shootings are a modern-day

suicide, as described by Durkheim, and function as an individual attempt to reregulate society

and establish new norms. 

           Emile Durkheim was a sociologist who aimed to understand how modern society

functioned, and how societies form social cohesion to which all individuals of that society are

part of. Durkheim’s views were different from other major theorists like Karl Marx or Max

Weber because Durkheim’s focus was on understanding the role and control of society over the

individual. This was a significant distinction that separated Durkheim from other sociologists

because Marx believed that social life and society was based on the conflict for material goods,

Weber believed that society was built on rationalization rather than morality or tradition, while
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Durkheim argued that society was built upon social facts and shared values which change over

time and became more complex, (Gabler 2010). These social facts, Durkheim argued, were

deeply embedded into our society and were elements of society that existed external to, and

exerted influence over the individual. Because of this the social facts, or the things that make up

society, were completely internalized by the individual and created pressure to think, feel, and

behave in particular ways, (Shan 2020). 

Some of these social facts endured throughout society contributing to social solidarity,

which functions as the glue that binds society together. Through social solidarity, the sense of

belonging is created as well as the organization of individuals into a functioning social unit,

forming a cohesive society. The social solidarity of a group and the organization of individuals

into a single system contributes to a societal collective consciousness, and this consciousness is

created through the set of common beliefs, attitudes, and morals that further tie the society

together. Durkheim argues that collective consciousness provides the individuals of society with

social integration and moral regulation, and it is through this that social solidarity is

strengthened, (Shan 2020). Social integration is the commitment individuals have for one another

and how individuals orient themselves to other societal members and therefore society itself,

while moral regulation is the degree to which institutions provide individuals with norms and

values that are conducive to a prosperous society. Durkheim argued that one’s level of social

integration and moral regulation form social solidarity and without something to tie individuals

to society and generate social order, individuals will seek out a new equilibrium by acting against

the norms and values established. This need to act out against the norms and values established

in society to regain a sense of social integration or moral regulation is what caused Durkheim to

write his book, Suicide. Suicide was written by Durkheim in 1897 and aimed to dismantle the
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perception that suicide was a completely individual act. Instead, Durkheim stated that quite the

opposite was true, rather than trying to analyze the individual’s mental state, stability, etc.,

sociologists could better understand the act by analyzing the society and its effects on individuals

based on its objective existence or sui generis, (Shan 2020). In Suicide, Durkheim argues that

when group attachment (social integration) or behavior regulation (moral regulation) are either

too high or too low for an individual in society, then the individual will aim to reestablish

equilibrium through a variety of different suicidal acts. Durkheim wrote about four different

types of suicide: egoistic, altruistic, anomic, and fatalistic – egoistic and altruistic suicide dealt

with group attachment while fatalistic and anomic suicide were more aligned with behavior

regulation. According to Explorations in Classical Sociological Theory, egoistic suicide occurs

when social integration is too weak and the individual is usually not well integrated into the

larger society, this can be seen when individuals become detached from society and their

personal goals become dominant. Altruistic suicide occurs when social integration is too strong

and individuals are so attached to their group values that they sacrifice their life and commit

suicide in the name of the group. Anomic suicide occurs when moral regulation is too weak and

appears when the powers of the society are disrupted, meaning that the individuals who commit

anomic suicide feel constantly disillusioned and disappointed that they cannot maintain what

society expects of them. The fourth type of suicide described by Durkheim is fatalistic suicide,

fatalistic suicide happens when moral regulation is too strong and societies are over-regulated by

their institutions creating feelings of restriction, causing individuals to lose all possible hope of

freedom due to the power imposed over them constantly, (Kenneth and Daynes 132).

Durkheim’s work in Suicide showed the sociologists of this time that there were various

forms of suicide and that each one independently functioned to explain the possible thoughts and
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reasons that a person would commit suicide; however, the act was not exclusively selfish and

instead said more about the surrounding society and the societal influences imposed on the

individuals who take their own lives. It was from Durkheim’s distinction in typologies of suicide

that the term anomie was created, corresponding with his definition of anomic suicide Durkheim

stated that anomie was, “a social condition in which there is a disintegration or disappearance of

the norms and values that were previously common to the society… anomie occurs during and

follows periods of drastic and rapid changes to the social, economic, or political structures of

society and represent a transition phase where the values and norms that were commonplace are

no longer valid and new ones have not yet evolved to take their place,” (Crossman 2019).

Durkheim’s study and insights of suicide and anomie have given sociologists insights into the

level of social integration and moral regulation the individuals of different societies have. As

times changed since 1897 so have some of the margins on the definitions of suicide. Mass

shootings are considered contemporary current events and since they have become more frequent

they are occasionally characterized as suicides because the motives of perpetrators are to die at

either the hands of the police or themselves after the shooting. Mass shootings in the United

States have been increasing with more and more fatalities being left in the wake of these events

but these can be contributed to a multitude of factors. These factors contribute greatly to the

events but one of the most notable factors when discussing Durkheim’s application of suicide

and anomie to mass shootings is premeditation. Premeditation is a large factor in mass shootings,

according to Everytown Research,  “ [from the years 2009-2018] perpetrators demonstrating

dangerous, premeditated behavior warning signs took 536 lives and wounded 250 more, equating

to more than half of all mass shooting deaths and a third of all injuries,” (Everytown 2019). This

premeditation shows a level of disconnection with the surrounding society and for many mass
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shooters they, “perceive acute social and/or situational factors that contribute to driving the

attack,” (Medical Director Institute 2019). The disconnection felt by many of the shooters by

society is something that Durkheim associates with anomic suicide, and for that reason, mass

shootings and anomic suicide events are linked and represent the modern form of Durkheim’s

definition. 

Anomic suicide, as discussed above, is when moral regulation in society is too which and

the individuals constantly feel disillusioned and disappointed such that they cannot keep up with

what is expected of them. A mass shooter that represents anomic suicide as described by

Durkheim is the shooter Elliot Rodgers who killed 6 people and injured 13. Rodgers was

disconnected from society the norms it imposed due to his inability to achieve the societal

“norm” for young men. Rodgers saw himself as the ultimate male specimen but was unable to

attain the ultimate form of manhood shown in American movies and society by not being able to

get a girlfriend and his inability to have intimate relationships with them. In a society that praised

men that were womanizers, and men that had girlfriends and were noticed by women, Elliot was

unable to attain that and acted out against society and purposefully attacked a sorority house

because the women in the house emblemized the women who would never give him the attention

he felt he deserved and ended the killing rampage by committing suicide in his car. Although

Rodgers was unable to fit the norms of one society, he did find himself fitting the standard of

another. Incels, or involuntary celibates, are a hate-group that believes, “women flock to other

men who are not them. This enrages them as they feel they are owed sex by those same women,”

(Wright 2018). Through these characteristic traits of anomie and anomic suicide, Rodgers fits

Durkheim’s description of someone who commits anomic due to an inability to meet the norms

of society and attempting to create new ones. Another case of anomic suicide represented
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through a mass shooting is the case of Christopher Harper-Mercer who shot 9 people, including

himself and injured 7 others in Oregon. Christopher shared a similarity with Rodgers; however,

most of his detachment with society was over the belief that he was generally mistreated, since

birth, by everyone in society saying, “I have always been the most hated person in the world,

ever since I arrived in this world, I have been under siege from it. Under attack from morons and

idiots… here I am, 26, with no friends, no job, no girlfriend… I long ago realized that society

likes to deny people like me these things,” (Anderson 2017). Christopher shot up his Oregon

college campus and murdered 8 fellow students and a professor after posting a manifesto about

how society had failed him. For both of these cases, shooting as many people as possible was an

act to reclaim the norms and values that were lost or attainable. I think that Durkheim’s

application of suicide is still an apt analysis that can be applied to current day events like mass

shootings with appropriate examination of the larger society and the regulations that it imposes

on individuals. I do believe that placing the blame on mental illness is an way for people to

evaluate when it comes to violences such as these because it’s easier to find a definitive answer

when dealing with mental health rather than looking at the extremely large society that envelops

all of our lives and is much harder to analyze.

When these shootings happened, most people were first to blame mental illness as the

main culprit in these cases saying that they wouldn’t have happened, or happened to that caliber,

had any possible mental illness been addressed. What needed to be addressed after these

shootings was the role larger society played and how its major role was to influence these

shooters. The norms and values of the overarching society imposed on these two men were, they

felt, too strict and when they were unable to attain the goals that were engrained into American

society they acted out with violence. The violence was an attempt to reestablish new norms that
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favored them and their role in society, but their views were so against the societal norms

established that they couldn't change their self-imposed place in the order. These anomic suicides

acted out through mass shootings further represent the individuals who are unable to be meet the

standards and social facts that all individuals conform to in society. In the wake of these murders

and anomic suicides, there is a certain degree of normlessness that occurs in the society itself but

depending on how strong the social solidarity between the other members is the norms are

reestablished and social cohesion is organized into the single system again. Durkheim’s

definition of anomic suicide addresses and appropriately relates the current day mass shootings

seen in America to his writings in Suicide back in 1897. Durkheim’s suicide theories accurately

express the concentration of moral regulation and social integration that an individual may have

in society and the actions that they take to maintain the norms and values of their experiences.

By understanding Durkheim’s theories we are better able to understand the societal factors and

subsequent implications of mass shootings of the larger society and the social facts that it

maintains.
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Works Cited

“Mass Shootings in American: 2009-2019.” Mass Shootings in America 2009-2019, 2019,

maps.everytownresearch.org/massshootingsreports/mass-shootings-in-america-2009-

2019/.

“Mass Violence in America: Causes, Impact, and Solutions.” Medical Director Institute,

National Council for Behavioral Health, Aug. 2019, www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-

content/uploads/2019/08/Mass-Violence-in-America_8-6-19.pdf?daf=375ateTbd56.

Allan, Kenneth and Sarah Daynes. 2017.Pp. 97–142 in Explorations in classical sociological

theory: seeing the social world. Los Angeles: Sage

Anderson, Rick. “'Here I Am, 26, with No Friends, No Job, No Girlfriend': Shooter's Manifesto

Offers Clues to 2015 Oregon College Rampage.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times,

24 Sept. 2017, www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-school-shootings-2017-story.html.

Crossman, Ashley. 2019. “Learn About Emile Durkheim's Classic Study of Suicide in

Sociology.” ThoughtCo. Retrieved (https://www.thoughtco.com/study-of-suicide-by-

emile-durkheim-3026758).

Gabler, Jay. “Sociology For Dummies Cheat Sheet.” For Dummies,

www.dummies.com/education/science/sociology-for-dummies-cheat-sheet/.
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Shan, Yan. “Emile Durkheim, 1858-1917.” 2020, Development of Sociological Thought,

Sociology 301, Colorado State University.

Waters, John. 2019. “Mass Shootings and Émile Durkheim: John Waters.” First Things.

Retrieved (https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2019/08/mass-shootings-and-

mile-durkheim).

Wright, Jennifer. “Why Incels Hate Women.” Harper's BAZAAR, 27 April. 2018,

www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/politics/a20078774/what-are-incels/.