Sociology of the Event and the Crisis

Abstract

Edgar Morin developed the"Sociology of the Evebt"during the latter half of 1960's and the first half of 1970's. He emphases the significance of the event by suggesting that it helps us understand the social system in general, not something as hazard, accident, personal experience in particular. He especially notes that the"crisis"elucidates the change of the social system. As well, he claims that"crisis"does not only suspend the existing function of the social system, but also enble it to regenerate. I argue, in this paper, that Morin's insight provides us with some understanding of the social system, since social system and its problem come to our mind only when the social event, as the"crisis", threatens its existence. To see this, I examine the Hanshin-Awaji Great Earthquake as a case of the"crisis". The disaster is analyzed in terms of two systems; namely, the social system as the whole and the living system in the disaster area; for it is the living system in this area that has been most damaged by the disaster.