Structural functionalism

I remember back when I was in pre-school, I had always been around kids who were different from me but I had to live among them despite the difference and I never really minded it. They all had similar facial features, same language and at times, they had somewhat the same attitude in dealing with their surroundings. All these things bonded them together and would have made me feel like a total alien and it rarely did. There was this one time though - we had to dress up in our national attires. At that time, I had never done such a thing in my whole life so I was excited. My father was excited, too. In fact, very excited that he sewed my attire and designed it himself. He came up with a master piece from my point of view and Im not exactly good at describing things but all I can say about it is that it was very beautiful. It suited me but most importantly, it well demonstrated the beauty of how a Muslim Dress should look like. So, there I was at school, surrounded by kids who wore extravagant attires that reflected the cultures they came from, mostly wore clothes which were similar to hijab since most of them were Arabs. But I never felt insecure, I handled myself pretty well and I was proud because while they were wearing these almost similar dresses, I shined out wearing an attire that showed a part of me that they rarely saw, a part of me who was a proud Filipino. To most, the experience may seem a bit unimportant. But see, the fact that they got to know me more through the dress I was wearing says that even with the simple act of wearing something that originates from your culture, sets you apart from others. What would have happened if I tried to blend in and wear what they wore? I would have murdered the part of me who was struggling to preserve my identity as a Filipino. But then, you might say So, what? Its not like if you didnt wear the weird thing you would be denying who you are. Well, I say what is a car without tires? See, every big thing there is in this world wouldnt be what it is without the little things which builds it up. Just like in a culture or society. In Anthropology, there is a theory to describe the idea of little details making up the bigger picture and its called Structural Functionalism, but it focuses more on the social aspect. It looks at society as if it was a body in which all parts must work equally and balanced in order for it to continue being healthy and well. And as we all know, the human body has evolved over the billions of centuries, just like society has over time. Durkheim, a famous philosopher, was one of the few philosophers who have worked with this theory and had focused on how social systems are integrated and hold themselves together. In a Society, everything has a part, from customs to traditions and institutions. Take one and youd end up with something thats well, youll end up with something thats different from what it was before you stripped it out of one of its description. Then

soon afterwards, all the other parts would start to collapse. And before you know it, its all gone. Like for instance, our Filipino ancestors; they had a completely different religion before the foreigners like the Spanish, Japanese and American came in to promote their own religion. The religion our ancestors lived by surely had an enormous effect on how they lived their life and what they believed in. But when outsiders came and replaced that important aspect of their life, everything changed. Of course there would have been different rules to abide, different customs they had to follow. But soon, the change found its way into everything and everywhere. Another more modern example of structural functionalism is in the case of those who guard a nations safety, like the military or police, without them a nation would be vulnerable and weak which would make it an easy target for enemies who would want to blow up places for whatever reason they may have, and when they do. BOOM! The society that had been living in the nation is turned into ashes. Though this theory has been making sense as far as what Ive vainly written, the theory itself has been an object of criticism just like any other theory which existed before it. Structural functionalism has been criticized for being too focused on the present and how it merely considers what a society has to offer now instead of what it could be in the near future, it lacks the explanation of the social changes which societies go through. Ive also read about how it doesnt consider the fact that a society can be torn apart by its own components and cause conflicts among them. The theory also seem to be giving off the vibe that, humans who are a part of a society are like puppets, this is according to some article Ive read online. As for me, well, I do appreciate the theory and I think it does help us in understanding what society is, and how it is much more complicated than I ever thought it was. But more than that, it made me value the beliefs, customs and everything that is related to the society I live in. After all, one part goes down and it all breaks apart, sort of like One for all, all for one kind of a thing.

Mishael A. Casim 3-BSN-A