The importance of French sociological thought for the development of contemporary academic sociology is widely recognized, especially for the contributions of E. Durkheim and M. Mauss, but also of authors as C. Lévi-Strauss, G. Gurvitch, P. Bourdieu, A. Caillé, among others. There is, however, an interesting fact: in spite of its prestige, the particular characteristics of the French sociology are unknown in the world of contemporary sociological theory. And, for being unaware of its characteristics, some authors try to define the French sociology within the British dualistic paradigm agency versus structure. Now, such demarcation constitutes an epistemological mistake that prevents the understanding that French sociology draws on another paradigm: the "effervescent" Durkheimian logic of social differentiation that is developed through the systematization of the notions of representation, symbolism and social totality. An important key for disclosing the French sociological thought, particularly its new theoretical formulation in the context of social individualization observed in modernity, is Mauss' systematization of studies on the gift, of the three obligations: to give, to receive and to reciprocate.
French sociology; Social differentiation; Gift