Comparison of Sociologies of Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim and Max Weber.
(1) Contracting to Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim, Max Weber proposes that society is neither driven by social conflict, nor it is sui-generis. Society is made up of actors, those who perform action (Social Action) and accordingly form relationship with each other developing family, kinship, etc.
Therefore, Weber’s sociology is realistic sociology and not idealistic (as that of Marx and Emile Durkheim).
(2) The recent decades have witnessed the renaissance of classical tradition is sociologies as fashioned by Emile Durkheim, Karl Marx and Max Weber Post – World War-2 the world has witnessed new radical movements both in capitalist and socialist societies and countries that are making transition from agrarian to industrial economy. Therefore sociologists have become more aware of conflict and change in social life. They have turned their attention to social issues that preoccupied the founding fathers of the discipline.
(3) Both Durkheim and Max Weber were successful in introducing sociological approach into other social sciences, Eg. in history, law, economics, politics and comparative religion. Both, being classical sociologists, aimed to establish the scope and methods of new disciple and to show its worth.
(4) Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim – positivists. Max Weber – non–positivist.
Despite the differences, both schools have tried to establish causal connections and functional correlations Eg: Emile Durkheim’s study of Suicide, Max Weber’s Protestant ethics and spirit of capitalism.
(5) Max Weber’s Ideal Type solved one of the biggest problem in sociology. The primary problem faced by sociology is that various concepts are not linked firmly to a particular description or explanation. Eg. What Hegel calls civil society, Marx calls it capitalism; what Hegel calls state, Marx calls it socialism. According to T.B. Bottomore, if Max Weber’s ideas, esp. his concept of Ideal Type, had been followed in sociology, much of this confusion and aimless discussion could have been prevented. According to Max Weber, all definitions are in part arbitrary and the value of a definition is only determined by its fruitfulness in research.
(6) Social Relationship – Durkheim has classified Social Relationships on the basis of “Solidarity” between Mechanical Solidarity and organic solidarity. Max Weber –SR are vast, unorganized, chaotic. Based on S.A. (based on subjective meanings. . . . . . .)
But he is more concerned about Social Relationships based on political system - he made distinction between Traditional, charismatic and Bureaucrat type of authority.
Thus, while Emile Durkheim gave primary important to “solidarity” in sociology, Max Weber gave important to “Social Action”. This concept has been celebrated and widely used in contemporary sociology by Talcott Parson, Robert K. Merton and later Sprott.
(7) The contemporary sociology is much less concerned with the construction of all embracing theories than during the time of Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. For this development, sociology owes much to Max Weber who considered reality as vast, unorganized, chaotic which cannot be studied entirely .Therefore one should not develop “Grand theories” (like Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim) but use ideal type to study social phenomena.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Max Weber's observations and conclusions regarding modernity and its causes have named him one of the most influential sociologists of our era. Weber believed that in the West rationality had come to become the predominant impetus for action. Weber said that Rationality was one of four motivations towards actions--the remaining three, Traditional, Affective, and Value-Oriented, had been based on more humanistic qualities and had all faded into almost insignificance in the modern age. He thought that this change in stimulus had led to men becoming dehumanised, trapped in the 'iron cage' of production and bureaucracy. Weber's writings sought to understand why Capitalism had come to predominate in the West, rather than other parts of the world, and to examine the different aspects of such a society. Weber argued that sociology was inevitably a subjective science that was dominated by the importance of the individual; this belief led him to employ very unique methods of analysis.…
- 1754 Words
- 5 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Max Weber is well known within sociology as one of the founding fathers. He believes that over-generalisation should be avoided as much as possible and we should understand human action, hence ‘social action theory’. Weber contributed four ideal types that should be used to study particular situations; traditional action, affective action, rational value-oriented action and rational goal-oriented action. Weber’s approach of these four different ideal types led him to methodological individualism, this is a focal point on how people interact in social situations and how these interactions are not determined by a social structure but by the individuals response to the situation that develops society and is what keeps society operating.…
- 1017 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Theorists such as Max Weber, Emile Durkheim and Karl Marx had different opinions with respect to religion and society. Weber believed that religion had an influence on social changes in society whereas Durkheim who was a functionalist theorist said that everyone has a part to play and there must be social consensus to obtain solidarity. However Marx, the Conflict theorist believed that religion enhances disorders in society, creating division and is not integrated. He believed that it also produces conflict instead of consensus, dictating rules and a mechanism of social control.…
- 3447 Words
- 14 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Identify and critique the sociological contributions of the following mid-to-late nineteenth and early twentieth century European thinkers: Auguste Comte, Herbert Spencer, Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber.…
- 416 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Durkheim was a functionalist during the late 1800s and early 1900s. One of the central themes of his work was to identify the relationship between the individual personality and wider society. This…
- 653 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Collins notes that sociology is unified “around a quest for a general theory rather than merely a set of investigations of social problems or historical particulars” (Collins 186). We must not try and define sociology in terms of the historical context of events. Durkheim has a serious interest in distinguishing between historical and functional aspects of life. Durkheim argued that the “basic contents of sociology should be historical: only by taking a long sweep of time…
- 958 Words
- 4 Pages
Better Essays -
Karl Marx, Max Weber, and Emile Durkheim are widely recognized as the trinity of sociological theory. While these three sociologists were trailblazing social theorists who enhanced the study of human behavior and its relationship to social institutions, other, more contemporary scholars were just as innovative - one of those scholars being W. E. B. Du Bois.…
- 1907 Words
- 8 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Max Weber 1st sociologist Suffered from severe depression How religion institution drive the economic structure Verstehen – research until you have understand what is going on Emile Durkheim Statistics Social facts Number guy – census data collector Positivistic sociology Suicide Anomie Normlessness – loss of normal Not dependable George Simmel…
- 4166 Words
- 20 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Marx, Durkheim, and Weber together comprise the historical core of the sociological tradition. While they each come from very different perspectives and offer profound contributions to the field, they each have tried to address problems associated with the advent of modernity. The economy is a fundamental part of contemporary society because it’s a social institution. It also contributes to every aspect of the superstructure of society in educational, ethical, legal, religious, an administrative organization. These classical sociologists Marx, Durkheim, and Weber were the first to explore the relationship between the economy and society in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries; each developed different viewpoints based on their respective theoretical positions. Marx viewed the economy as the base that determines the social superstructure; Durkheim viewed the economy as one of a number of social institutions that make up a society, whereas Weber viewed the economy in part as an extension of religious belief. The following analyses will be informed by the classic texts of Marx, Durkheim, and Weber. These include Marx’s Communist Manifesto (1988), The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte (1963), and The German Ideology (1998);…
- 2955 Words
- 10 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Point out what the approach of a sociologist who is influenced by the structural-functional approach (say, Emile Durkheim) has in common with the approach of a sociologist influenced by the social-conflict approach (say, Karl Marx).…
- 1526 Words
- 7 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Two names that are repeatedly mentioned in sociological theory are Karl Marx and Max Weber. In some ways these two intellectuals were similar in the way they looked at society. There are also some striking differences. In order to compare and contrast these two individuals it is necessary to look at each of their ideas. Then a comparison of their views can be illustrated followed by examples of how their perspectives differ from each other.…
- 1917 Words
- 8 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Weber used comparative sociology to understand variance in society. He studied the difference in cultures that explained the different social orderings that emerged. From his work ‘A Protestant Ethic’, Weber acknowledges that religion can be a cause for societal change and a social structure imbued with religious influences and values can in turn influence the individual’s that inhabit such a society. For example Weber takes the Calvinist and Lutheran faiths and suggests that the are the mother and father of modern capitalism. With such strong beliefs in the Calvinist faith such as predestination (that those chosen for salvation were chosen before birth) Weber suggested this was a cause for uneasiness and indifference amongst the Calvinist as everyone wanted salvation. To acquire this they would strive to be worldly successful, in the belief that the successful would surely be those amongst the salvaged.Calvinists turned to labour to achieve success. Lutheranism beliefs stated that there was a calling in life and this calling was what the believer devoted their lives to, this calling for many was the life of labour. Weber suggested that these beliefs were the beginnings of a labour filled life that was the beginning of capitalism. According to Weber, religion’s strong foothold in society necessitated the search for success and salvation. The structure of society at the time with its essential features such as religion and its belief system had large affects for those individuals who occupied it such as the Calvinists and Lutherans. By using his sociological imagination Weber demonstrated the affect social structure had on the personal experiences of the…
- 1726 Words
- 7 Pages
Good Essays -
Over the years, sociologist has put forward their views when it came to defining, studding and understanding society. Society can be defined as a group or unit of people living in a geographical area, sharing a similar background and/or culture. In sociological term, a society is any group of people living together in a group, comprising a single community and whose members are interdependent. To sociologists who are involved in the systematic study of society, “the important aspect of defining society is its group structure/framework.” Karl Marx did not see society as being a harmonious and well integrated system as Emile Durkheim did, but he instead saw it as an arena of conflict and competing interests. Conflict may be defined as “an open clash between two opposing groups/individuals.” Perspective refers to a specific view that an individual has on a situation or topic. Emile Durkheim was the founding father of the Functionalist Perspective. He saw society as a balance system made up of interrelated and interdependent parts. Karl Marx however looked at human social life from a completely different perspective than the functionalist. His work provided the foundation for the Conflict Perspective. The Functionalist Perspective saw society in a positive manner and sees it as stable, with all the parts working together, while the Conflict Perspective saw society as having two (2) classes: bourgeoisie (lower class0 and the proletariat (upper/working class). They saw where there would always be war, chaos and conflict between the two groups because capitalism gave the proletariat power and control over resources so they exploited the lower class.…
- 891 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Max Weber was a 19th century German sociologist and one of the founders of modern sociology. He wrote The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism in 1905. Max Weber was a precocious child, born in Germany in 1864. He went to university and became a professor, but suffered a mental breakdown in 1897 that left him unable to work for five years. In 1905 he published his most famous work, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. He returned to teaching in 1918 and died in 1920. He is considered the father of modern sociology.…
- 2582 Words
- 11 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Max Weber (1864-1920) was considered a subject matter of sociology as the so-called social action, which correlates with the actions of other…
- 3173 Words
- 10 Pages
Powerful Essays