Christmas is a beloved holiday， and for good reason. It’s a time of parties， delicious seasonal beverages， feasting， gifts， and for many， a time of homecoming， but beneath the surface of festivity， there’s quite a bit going on， sociologically speaking. What is it that makes Christmas such a good time for so many， and a let down for others？

圣诞节之所以备受喜爱，这背后自有缘由。圣诞期间，人们热衷举办派对，品尝时令饮品，共享盛宴，互赠礼品，很多人还会选择回家团聚。不过，从社会学视角来看，在这节日欢庆表象之下，实则大有玄机。圣诞节何以成为大多数人眼中一段如此美好的时光，同时又让另外一些人倍感失落呢？

The social value of rituals

仪式的社会价值

Classical sociologist Émile Durkheim1 can help shed light on these questions. Durkheim， as a functionalist， developed a still widely used theory for explaining what holds society and social groups together through his study of religion. Durkheim identified core aspects of religious structure and participation that sociologists today apply to society in general， including the role of rituals in bringing people together around shared practices and values; the way participation in rituals reaffirms shared values， and thus reaffirms and strengthens the social bonds between people （he called this solidarity）; and the experience of “collective effervescence，” in which we share in feelings of excitement and are unified in the experience of participating in rituals together. As a result of these things， we feel connected to others， a sense of belonging， and the social order as it exists makes sense to us. We feel stable， comfortable， and secure.

古典社会学家埃米尔·涂尔干的理论或可有助于阐明这些问题。作为功能主义学派的代表人物，涂尔干通过对宗教的研究，提出了一套至今仍被广泛应用的理论，用以阐释维系社会及社会群体凝聚的要素。