Final answer:
Émile Durkheim saw totemism as an early form of religion that symbolized the collective conscience of a society, playing a vital role in unifying communities and maintaining social cohesion.
Step-by-step explanation:
Émile Durkheim was a pioneering French sociologist who deeply analyzed the practices of totemism among Indigenous Australian peoples. In his seminal work, The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life (1915), Durkheim considered totemism as a fundamental form of religion, representing the power of society. He believed that the totemic symbols stand not just for the specific items in the environment, such as animals or plants, but also symbolize the society's collective conscience and are therefore sacred. To Durkheim, religion and totemism play essential roles in unifying communities by creating shared definitions of the sacred and profane. His functionalist view posited that society functions as an interconnected and interdependent system, with religion being a critical part to its solidarity and perpetuation. Durkheim's study of totemism helps understand broader societal structures and collective behavior, suggesting its important role in maintaining social cohesion.