•Society is made up of social facts that exceed our intuitive understanding and must be investigated through observations and measurements. oLanguage as social fact:Is a thing which must be studied empiricallyExternal to the individualCoercive of the individualChanges in language can be explained only by other social facts and never by one individuals intentions•Material Social facts- concrete, directly, empirically observable; styles of architecture, legal codes•Non-Material Social Facts- not directly observable, but just as much impact as material; moral values, norms, culture, levels of social integration, social regulation in society (Durkheim’s main interest)•Relational Realism-interactions, have their own levels of realityNON- Material Social Facts (Most important to Durkheim)Morality