Maurice Halbwachs in Chicago,
Or the Ambiguities of Durkheimian Rationalism
Jean-Christophe MARCEL

Summary :
This account of Halbwachs’ trip to Chicago in 1930 shows the ambiguity of his conception of the social sciences ( he remained faithful to strict positivist methods in his way of presenting evidence, but his interest for certain types of study matter enabled him to come closer to a phenomenological conception of social realities), which may be illustrated by the way he reacted to the work done by his American colleagues.

Key words : Sociology, Collective Psychology, Chicago School, Methodology, Halbwachs
Jcmarcel@club-internet.fr