The elementary forms of religious life french les formes lmentaires de la vie religieuse published by the french sociologist mile durkheim in 1912 is a . Durkheims two problems durkheims primary purpose in the elementary forms was to describe and explain the most primitive 1 religion known to man. In the elementary forms of religious life 1912 emile durkheim sets himself the task of discovering the enduring source of human social identity he . The elementary forms of religious life has 2720 ratings and 74 reviews hadrian said this is one of the earliest foundational works in sociology and th. If religion generated everything that is essential in society this is because the idea of society is the soul of religion in the elementary forms of religious