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Compare and contrast the Marxist and Functionalist explanations of the role of religion in society.
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JENNI SAYER Compare and contrast the Marxist and Functionalist explanations of the role of religion in society. Marxists and Functionalists both have different views on the role of religion in society. Functionalists believe that the role of religion is to keep society stable and to with hold the norms and values of society. Marxists on the other hand argue that religion is used as a form of social control. Both views do agree that religion is used to keep society the same and not to bring about any change. Emile Durkheim wrote from a Functionalist perspective on the role of religion. In his book "The Elementary Forms of Religious Life" Durkheim argued that all societies are divided into two categories, "the scared" and the "profane" (secular). He saw religion as "a unified system of beliefs and practices relating to sacred things," these sacred things could be gods, times, places, events or...
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