I will frame these reflections with a series of questions.įirst, what are the key traits of the Protestant Ethic? The answer to this question turns on Weber’s concept of “this‐worldly asceticism.” This concept delineates a distinct pattern of human behavior: In what follows here, I offer an overview and analysis vis‐à‐vis this latter line of inquiry.

Third, Weber’s treatment of the Protestant ethic can be seen as a key element of a sociologically inspired philosophy of history, especially in terms of the unintended and unanticipated consequences of action.Īnd finally, one can, with all due respect, leave all the preceding issues aside and instead make a more practical and empirical investigation of how Weber’s notion of the Protestant ethic helps us understand developments in the world today. One can ask, “Just what is the role of ideas in processes of social change?” (In Marxist terms, if you will, this is the question about the relation of “superstructure” and “sub‐structure,” which preoccupied Gyorgy Lukacs and Antonio Gramsci, among others.) Second, the essay can be placed within the overall context of Weber’s opus, especially if one sees this opus, at least in part, as a debate with the ghost of Karl Marx. The obvious first approach is to explore the validity of Weber’s historical argument: Did Protestantism really play the role he assigned to it in the genesis of modern capitalism? This question has occupied several cohorts of historians, from R.H. It seems to me that there are four equally valid approaches to discussing the impact of The Protestant Ethic. To what extent is this correlation still evident around the globe today? A century after Weber’s essay, Protestantism has changed dramatically. It indicates the continued relevance of Weber’s analysis regarding the correlation of the Protestant ethic and economic development. Needless to say, this is quite a tribute to Weber’s intellectual stature. Footnote 1 It has been the ship that launched a thousand dissertations, and it has created a cottage industry of exegesis.

Max Weber’s essay, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, must surely be the most discussed piece of writing in the history of social science.

Weber the protestant ethic