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Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (view source)
Revision as of 22:41, May 19, 2009
, 22:41, May 19, 2009no edit summary
Weber argues that the religious values of Protestantism --speciifically [[Puritan]] values that emphasize hard work and disparage waste and leisure, contributed enormously to the rise of [[capitalism]] and economic success of protestant nations. Protestants saw success in business as proof of [[predestination]], and thus put a heavy emphasis on entrepreneurial activity, as opposed to [[Catholics]], who saw wealth as a sign of sin. Weber focused on the ideology of Calvinism, which held that salvation must be earned, to be a major cause of the rise of capitalism. The specific sect was less important than the shared values of the sects and their minority position in the general culture. He used the life and ideas of [[Benjamin Franklin]] as part of his evidence.
Weber argues that the religious values of Protestantism --speciifically [[Puritan]] values that emphasize hard work and disparage waste and leisure, contributed enormously to the rise of [[capitalism]] and economic success of protestant nations. Protestants saw success in business as proof of [[predestination]], and thus put a heavy emphasis on entrepreneurial activity, as opposed to [[Catholics]], who saw wealth as a sign of sin. Weber focused on the ideology of Calvinism, which held that salvation must be earned, to be a major cause of the rise of capitalism. The specific sect was less important than the shared values of the sects and their minority position in the general culture. He used the life and ideas of [[Benjamin Franklin]] as part of his evidence.
Weber's intention was to demonstrate a relationship between Calvinism and a peculiar form of capitalism, not in terms of genesis, but in terms of 'feedback.' Weber granted that the Protestant ethic which he described differed in form and emphasis from that immediately following the Reformation, and that it had altered in response to a developing capitalism. But Weber sought to demonstrate that this altered ethic in turn influenced capitalism, serving as an impetus to its further development to a stage characterized by what Weber called the 'capitalist ethos.' He by no means imputed monocausality, nor did he assume that he had at all explained the origins of capitalism. Rather, he focused upon the institutionalization of the capitalist complex, and here the effect of ideology appeared Vital.<Ref> See Forcese, (1968) </Ref>
==Tests==
==Tests==
Coleson (1972) argues that the general thrust of the Weber thesis is supported by examining the record of the last century. Those nations with a work ethic and moral standards that are followed, i.e., capitalist nations, are prosperous, while those with a lazy peasantry, a corrupt government, and no moral code, i.e., the Third World, are still suffering famine and poverty.<ref> Edward Coleson, "Weber Revisited: The Reformation and Economic Development Today." ''Fides et Historia'' 1972 4(2): 73-84. </ref>
Coleson (1972) argues that the general thrust of the Weber thesis is supported by examining the record of the last century. Those nations with a work ethic and moral standards that are followed, i.e., capitalist nations, are prosperous, while those with a lazy peasantry, a corrupt government, and no moral code, i.e., the Third World, are still suffering famine and poverty.<ref> Edward Coleson, "Weber Revisited: The Reformation and Economic Development Today." ''Fides et Historia'' 1972 4(2): 73-84. </ref>
* Weber, Max. ''The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism'' (1905) [http://www.amazon.com/Protestant-Ethic-Spirit-Capitalism-Editions/dp/048642703X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1242772269&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]; [http://www.amazon.com/Protestant-Ethic-Spirit-Capitalism-Twentieth-Century/dp/0140439218/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1242772269&sr=1-2 another edition; excerpt and text search]
* Weber, Max. ''The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism'' (1905) [http://www.amazon.com/Protestant-Ethic-Spirit-Capitalism-Editions/dp/048642703X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1242772269&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]; [http://www.amazon.com/Protestant-Ethic-Spirit-Capitalism-Twentieth-Century/dp/0140439218/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1242772269&sr=1-2 another edition; excerpt and text search]
* Baltzell. E. Digby. ''Puritan Boston and Quaker Philadelphia: Two Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Class Authority and Leadership'' (1979)
* Baltzell. E. Digby. ''Puritan Boston and Quaker Philadelphia: Two Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Class Authority and Leadership'' (1979)
* Forcese, Dennis P. "Calvinism, Capitalism And Confusion: The Weberian Thesis Revisited." ''Sociological Analysis'' 1968 29(4): 193-201. [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3710048 in JSTOR]
* Ghosh, Peter. ''A Historian Reads Max Weber: Essays on the Protestant Ethic'' (2008)
* Ghosh, Peter. ''A Historian Reads Max Weber: Essays on the Protestant Ethic'' (2008)
* Goldstein, Bernice, and Robert L. Eichhorn. "The Changing Protestant Ethic: Rural Patterns in Health, Work, and Leisure," ''American Sociological Review'', Vol. 26, No. 4 (Aug., 1961), pp. 557-565 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2090254 in JSTOR], looks at farmers in the American Midwest
* Goldstein, Bernice, and Robert L. Eichhorn. "The Changing Protestant Ethic: Rural Patterns in Health, Work, and Leisure," ''American Sociological Review'', Vol. 26, No. 4 (Aug., 1961), pp. 557-565 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/2090254 in JSTOR], looks at farmers in the American Midwest
[[category: Protestantism]]
[[category: Protestantism]]
[[category: Sociology]]
[[category: Sociology]]
[[Category:Business]]