Summary Of The Protestant Ethic And The Spirit Of Capitalism

Weber's essay The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism is his most famous work. It is argued that this work should not be viewed as a detailed study of Protestantism, but rather as an introduction into Weber's later works, especially his studies of interaction between various religious ideas and economic behavior. In The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber puts forward the thesis that the Puritan ethic and ideas influenced the development of capitalism. Religious devotion has usually been accompanied by rejection of mundane affairs, including economic pursuit. Why was that not the case with Protestantism? Weber addresses that paradox in his essay. He defines "the spirit of capitalism" as the ideas and habits that
It is therefore important to understand the differences and connections between the two kinds of arguments. An empirical argument is based on observation or experiment; it describes facts that can be proven. For example, Weber's claim that Protestants are more involved than Catholics in capitalistic activities is an empirical argument, based on his observations in Germany and elsewhere (Weber 4). Other studies might question the validity of such a claim, and in fact Weber has been criticized for many of the empirical arguments that underlie his study. Theoretical arguments are more speculative; their purpose is to give meaning to empirical observations. For example, Weber notices a correlation between ascetic Protestantism and the spirit of capitalism. What could explain such a connection? It is not possible to simply run an experiment or do a statistical study; this might show correlations, but it will not tell a causal story. Thus, Weber explores more about the "spirit" of capitalism, and about ascetic Protestantism, hopefully getting an accurate description of each, which is empirical, or experimental, work (Weber 4). He then attempts to tell a coherent story about what happened, given the information available, which is theoretical. He looks at his information through the lens of his theory, and ideally his theory would account for all of the relevant facts available (Weber 6). In reality, the
His discussion of the spirit of capitalism relies extremely heavily on the writings of Benjamin Franklin. Weber's characterizations have indeed been attacked by some, and he has been criticized for not relying on more quantitative surveys. This section also suggests that Weber's attitude toward the modern capitalistic system is undecided. He talks of an "iron cage" to describe the situation of individuals in the modern world (Weber 5). They are trapped in a larger system of institutions and values that define their opportunities in life. While capitalism needed ascetic Protestantism in order to become powerful, once it gained that power it took on a life of its