Durkheim as affect theorist

Abstract

While the sociology of emotions has a long history, theories of affect claim to pose new questions about contagious currents of feeling. But the definition of affect as an autonomous force that is precognitive, outside of semiotic systems, inaccessible to interpretation and measurement, and resistant to structure and critique may present unnecessary limitations for social inquiry. The division between affect and structure has left some sociologists, specifically in the sociology of emotions and the body, unsure about how to use affect theory. My article suggests that the aims of affect theory could be better served by a deeper engagement with, rather than a departure from, the traditions and concerns of sociological thought. To explore this possibility, I revisit Emile Durkheim’s efforts to understand the compelling power of social currents, which provide a way to rethink the divisions between affect and structure and the idea of a ‘presocial’ that has polarised scholars on the notion of affect.