ROANOKE, Virginia – The town is experiencing a divorce rate about twice as high as the national average, and is taking action to reduce the problems that result within the family. Due in large part to a suffering local economy, shifting cultural views towards marriage, and increased economic mobility for women, Roanoke, which in fact was once considered a traditional, “all-American” town, is now the city-county with the highest divorce rate in the country. In addition, the rate of marriage is decreasing. In response to perceived crises of the family such as this one, some churches are offering “pre-engagement” courses for young couples considering marriage, while Virginia state law now mandates that divorcing couples take 4 hours worth of mediation classes that instruct parents how to make the separation as comfortable as possible for their children.
[...] While the article mentions that the economic situation makes long-lasting marriage more difficult than before and that the cultural tide is shifting against marriage, we are still left without a specific understanding of what happened so that groups like family, friends, and churches are no longer fulfilling their earlier responsibilities of supporting families in crisis. Conclusions Durkheim's theory on the increased role of the state under “organic solidarity” does a decent job of explaining the case of Roanoke, VA. In considering its high division of labor, its explicit methods of teaching common values, and its common practice of questioning common values, [...]
[...] As Durkheim writes, it is “internalized in such a way as to be beyond criticism or reflection” (179). Durkheim likens this type of societal organization to a machine, terming it “mechanical solidarity” because of the single-mindedness of members' actions, the tightness of its construction, and the resulting incapability for independent, individual movements. On the other end of the spectrum of societal organization, Durkheim writes about more advanced societies that have “organic solidarity.” He uses this term because such societies, while still cohesive and functioning together for common goals, afford the individual a higher degree of individual autonomy in the same way that various body parts work independently within one living organism. [...]
[...] Roanoke indeed does have a high division of labor. As the article mentions, manual labor-type jobs in the manufacturing industry employ mainly men, while women work in professional jobs. Also, there is a high unemployment rate in the city in large part because the jobless do not have the specialized skills necessary for the positions available on the market. These two examples are obvious indicators that the society has a high degree of division of labor. Also of interest is that churches are leading classes for young couples considering marriage, in which the church teachings on moral orientation towards marriage and human relationships are purposefully and explicitly taught. [...]
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