Lecture 12 Maximilian Karl Emil “Max” Weber PDF

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The rise of bureaucracy
The role of religion in modern capitalism
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Lecture notes – Lectures 12 & 13 Outline: Lectures 12 & 13 concerns the main elements of the theory of Max Weber. In these lectures we focus on the drivers of the modern society as Weber saw them: The ‘Protestant Ethic’ which gave rise to the spirit (or value) of capitalism as an idea-based element; the rationalization of the modern society in which formal rationalization is the master process of modern capitalism and relatedly, the bureaucracy as a technical component of modern capitalism and thus modernity. Weber considered the modern capitalist society to be technically advanced and as having the components to allow it to flourish, but he was not a supporter of such processes. He saw the related disenchantment of society, the dehumanizing effects and spoke of the “iron cage” of bureaucracy that depressed him. His theory of how modernity came to be comes from a standpoint that differs from Marx’s historical materialism (economic focus) and that of Durkheim’s moral social stability. Key words:; verstehen; interpretivism; subjectivity; Protestant ethic; rationalization; bureaucracy; disenchantment; iron cage Key points and quotes: Weber’s theory had two main wings; 1. Methodology: he was an interpretivist and believed in subjectivity and the importance of “verstehen” (understanding) in social action. No universal laws can be found, only subjective understanding. 2. Theory of how modern capitalism arose: he sought to explain the rise of the modern capitalist society in Western Europe by looking at the ideology, ideas and thinking processes of the time (religion and rationalization became his focus) Weber asked; “why did capitalism take- off in Western Europe first – what were the pre-conditions? He asked himself what were the cultural reasons. This led him to develop two central themes; that of the religious ethic of that time and place and that of rationalization; Religion: For Weber the dominant religion of his time and place (Germany) was Protestantism and although complex, he thought that it had a specific relationship to work ethic that allowed capitalism to flourish as it did. This work ethic stemmed from the Calvinist tradition that had a relationship with work favourable to the capitalist ethos;  Predestination: at birth some are saved, others are damned. There is no way to know. Anxiety creates the conditions for hard work – perhaps a sign of being saved (one of the elect) could be found in a successful business life (people worked hard without question = strong wok ethic).  Asceticism: another part of the religion was about living frugally and not wasting money – this created a gathering of money (saving) that meant capital was accumulated. Although the spending we need to sustain capitalism was not a part of the religion, as religion lost its grip and weakened (society became more secular), things began to change enough for capitalism to take off. For Weber, it is important to acknowledge that capitalism was not just a stage in history separate to people’s thought and beliefs, but rather the religious beliefs allowed it to be nurtured as a social economic system. He explains its rise later on the rationalization that follows as religion is side-lined by science and formal rational thinking. Rationalization: for Weber, all people are rational, all societies are rational too – but in different ways. All people give reasons to make sense of behaviour (religion is a key one and forms a special kind of rationalixation called

“substantive” rationalization). But only in the West did a particular type of rationality become dominant – one based on bureaucracy, calculation and efficiency. Rationalization takes many forms but the most dominant in Western Europe in Weber’s day was not substantive ‘value-based’ rationalization like that in religion, but rather ‘formal rationalization’;  Based on “means to an end” formal rationality – whatever needs to be done to meet the goal (end) which in capitalist society, is pursuit of profit and growth.  This understanding of the world becomes less about religion, tradition and less about substantive or value-based rationality and instead focuses on science, calculation, predictability, control and efficiency. In this way, the world becomes less religious, less traditional, less enchanted as everything becomes knowable and predictable.  For Weber, the Ascetic Protestantism (work, save ethic) was most related to and complementary to formal rationalization that in turn, flourishes as modern capitalism - along with the rise of bureaucracies to keep it turning.  Formal rationality (rationalization) is seen through bureaucracy as the most technically efficient form of organization for a capitalist society. Bureaucracy demands hierarchy (those in authority – top down); favours precision; control and uniformity – it is a cold and formal process (takes no account of emotion or individual differences).  Centralization of power is another part of bureaucracy .  Goerge Ritzer applied Weber’s analysis of rational bureaucracy to modern times with his concept of Macdonaldization: suggesting that the fast food industry found all over the world represent s Weber’s rationalization concepts in action – processes we can see today in modern SA.  Weber was not in favour of rationalization and bureaucracy: he saw these processes as central to modern capitalism but recognised how they can reduce individual freedom and create monopolies of power since they become a force in society that cannot be resisted.  He spoke of the “iron cage” - the prison-like effects of the inability of people to live outside of or in opposition to these forces – think of how hard it is to avoid or side-step bureaucracy.  He also was afraid that disenchantment would lead to a loss of magic in the world as the cold and calculating rational bureaucracies would dominate all spheres of life – this would create a loss of our humanness.

Practice questions: Answer these short questions soon after the lecture in order to test your understanding of the content lecture-by-lecture to aid your understanding and to create revision notes as you learn for use in assessments and the exam. 1. How did religious beliefs help create the conditions for modern capitalism in Western Europe? 2. Why was formal rationalization also an effective process in the rise of modern capitalism?

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Interpretivism Verstehen Modern capitalism Spirit of capitalism Rationalization Bureaucracy

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Iron cage Disenchantment A bleak home environment, marked by conflicts between Weber’s parents His wife Marianne Weber was also a distinguished sociologist in her own right and an early figure in the field of feminist sociology He has scars on the left side of his face from drunken fraternity duelling Nervous breakdown in 1898 (age ) following violent argument with his father He wrote two essays on German and Roman history as Christmas gifts to his parents when he was 13 years old Talcott parsons translated his work in 1930

Themes  Methodology: interpretivism, verstehen, subjectivity & ideal types  The emergence, nature and outcomes of modern Western capitalism;  Rationalization  The rise of bureaucracy  The role of religion in modern capitalism  Loss of freedom and disenchantment (problems)  The iron cage (fears for the future) Themes: interpretivist methodology  Subjectivity: no universal laws, no absolute meaning  Verstehen: the interpretive understanding of the subjective motivations individuals attach to their actions  Ideal types: according to Weber, social scientists could use concepts called ideal-types, a sort of measuring stick that captures the most most essential components of any social thing  Simplify complex reality for understanding but are not objective truths, simple categories for analysis Role of religion  Rise of modern capitalism;  Material forces (like Marx) at play: security, health etc. (i.e. economic interests powerful in our actions) BUT ALSO  Other things at play, certain features of Western culture, in particular its religious underpinnings, created cultural conditions for the rise of modern capitalism.  Important connections between culture and economy;  Religious beliefs and morals;  Protestantism dominant religion during his lifetime  Interested in the values of this religion and their relationship to the rise of capitalism  In The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber presented a carefully researched historical account of how a strong Protestant work ethic and belief in living frugally helped foster the development of the capitalist economic system in the Western world...  For Weber, the ethos or “spirit” of capitalism was a particular orientation toward economic life that incorporates a sense of duty or responsibility. The “spirit” urged social actors to work hard, remain frugal, and to make money .  In particular, Weber highlighted the importance of John Calvin’s doctrine of predestination in developing the Protestant work ethic that eventually helped transform itself into the animating “spirit of capitalism”  of the eternal election, by which God has pre-destinated some to salvation, and others to destruction”  Some are saved and some will burn in Hell for all of eternity. Though this tenet is, it’s worth pointing out, part of a very complicated philosophy, there were, Calvin proposed, certain “outward signs” of one’s

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eventual fate. Someone particularly good looking, or with particular skills, or who might have started a successful business—that could be a sign that he is among the elect. Calvinists, naturally, looked to figure out who the elect were. If they became successful in business, perhaps that was a sign of God’s preferences. Weber argued that it was this that helped motivated capitalism = allowed a capitalist spirit to develop Weber argues in the text that capitalism developed to the advanced stage that it did in the West due to the fact that Protestantism encouraged the embrace of work as a calling from God, and consequently, a dedication to work that allowed one to earn a lot of money. This, combined with the value of asceticism (of living a simple earthly life devoid of costly pleasures) fostered an acquisitive spirit (saving money). Later, as the cultural force of religion declined, Weber argued that capitalism was freed from the limits placed on it by Protestant morals (the saving and living frugally ones), but the strong work ethic remained and expanded as an economic system of acquisition with the rising rationalization process – next lecture....