Sociology 1A Tutorial Preparation September 30,2015 (Max and Weber) PDF

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Think about differences and similarities between Marx and Weber. ...

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Sociology 1A Tutorial Preparation September 30,2015 1. What are some key differences between Max and Weber?

- Marx is mainly concerned with social class, whilst Weber also feels it necessary to consider social status (lifestyle and spending habits) and legal (party) status.

- Marx has a more macro view of society, he was very interested in class conflict. He believes that society is controlled by the means of production. Weber was more interested in understanding class to analyze how it affects an individuals advantage in life.

- In Marx`s social class theory, only three categories exist, the proletariat (people hired for a wage) the bourgeoisie (the upper class who own property and hire others) and the petit bourgeoisie (who are self employed). Weber adds a new category called the propertyless intellectuals who have a high level of skill but no property.

- In Weber`s analysis of class, skills are taken into account and he analyzes advantage based upon both property and the labor market whilst in Marx`s account of class it depends only on the ownership of property.

- Weber believed that social mobility upwards was possible to a certain extent, however, it was very difficult to make it into the Bourgeoisie due to their lifestyle habits which would be very difficult for someone of a lower class to keep up with. Marx believed more in decline. An individual could fall from the petit bourgeoisie down into the proletariat but not opposite.

- Weber believed that the categories of class would change depending on time. Marx believed in class conflict and argued that there would always be a proletariat and a bourgeoisie but believed that socialism would one day prevail.

2. What are some similarities between Marx and Weber?

- Both were German. However, Marx was before Weber. - Both were interested in class and how this affected society. - Both agreed with the concept of there being a bourgeoisie or upper class, a working class (or a proletariat as Marx called it) and a petit bourgeoisie.

- Both believed that the structure of society could change, the factors of capitalism made good conditions for this, e.g. the industrial revolution led to the development of cities and people were close together. However, Marx believed that change was inevitable and Weber argued that it would require specific conditions for change to occur. 3. What factors make an individual a member of a higher class for Max and Weber? Class in both Weber and Marx`s theories is all about finance. The individual is defined by whether or not they own property. In Weber`s theory however, skills are taken into account, as skills could be sold to earn a wage, which would therefore heighten an individual`s financial position. He therefore developed the category of propertyless intellectuals. It is important to note that in Weber`s theory class, status and party are all separate so whilst you could be doing well financially this does not guarantee you are of a high status or party, although the two are often intertwined....