Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Relating to or characterized by anomie: Describes a state or condition where social norms are weak, absent, or conflicting, leading to a breakdown in social bonds and a sense of aimlessness or alienation in individuals.
   • Socially disoriented or alienated: Describes a person who feels disconnected from society, its rules, and values, often resulting in feelings of rootlessness and isolation.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:
  • The novel explores the lives of anomic individuals in a rapidly changing city.
  • Sociologists study the anomic conditions that can arise during periods of great economic upheaval.
  • He felt profoundly anomic after moving to a new country where he didn't understand the cultural norms.

Advanced Usage

• Anomic suicide: A sociological concept introduced by Émile Durkheim, referring to suicide resulting from a sudden breakdown of social norms and a lack of regulation in an individual's life.

  • Durkheim's theory categorizes anomic suicide as distinct from other types like egoistic or altruistic suicide.

• Anomic conditions: Used to describe societal states of normlessness.

  • The period following the revolution was marked by anomic conditions and widespread uncertainty.

Variants and Related Words

• Anomie (n): The social condition of normlessness or personal state of isolation and alienation, to which the adjective "anomic" refers.
  • The rapid industrialization led to a sense of anomie among the displaced rural population.

Synonyms

• Alienated: Feeling estranged or isolated from a group or society.
• Disoriented: Having lost one's sense of direction, position, or relationship with one's surroundings.
• Rootless: Lacking a sense of belonging or stable social connections.

Antonyms

• Integrated: Successfully incorporated into a social group.
• Normative: Based on or prescribing norms, typical of a stable society.

Adjective

1. socially disoriented
   • anomic loners musing over their fate
   • we live in an age of rootless alienated people