The Protest Ant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

8/14/2019 The Protest Ant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

1/14

The Protestant Ethic and

the Spirit of Capitalism.

By Max Weber


2/14

Who is Max Weber?

v He was a German lawyer,politician,

historian, sociologist, and political

economist.

v Major works dealt with Rationalization,

Bureaucratization, andDisenchantment associated with the

rise of capitalism .


3/14

Where did protestant comefrom?

v Protestant Reformation:

v Started by Martin Luther (1517-

1648)

v Argued that People could be saved

through faith alone.-led toLutheranism


4/14


5/14

Calvinism

v Calvinism is another prominent

protestant religion.

v Rooted in the ideas of John Calvin.

v Believes in the doctrine of

predestination- that individualsalvation was preordained by God.


6/14

What is Capitalism?

v Acc to wiki, Capitalism is an economic

and social system in which capital,

the non-labor factors of production isprivately controlled and profits

distributed to owners.

v In other words Capitalism implies the

pursuit of forever renewable wealth.


7/14

What's the link betweenProtestant teachings and

Capitalism?v The concept of Calling to worldlyactivities.

v

People have a duty to fulfil theobligations imposed upon them bytheir position in the world.

v

Idea developed by Luther; states thateach legitimate calling has the sameworth to God.


8/14

Situation beforeReformation

v People did not see their "worldly"

activities (such as their occupations

and businesses) as being in service

to God.

v But the Reformation rejected this

attitude.


9/14

Changes after theReformation

v Reformation stated that participatingin worldly activities is a way of serving God.

v This was part of Gods purpose foreach individual.

v Therefore labor and business becamea way of serving God.


10/14

The four tenets of Calvinism

v God is all powerful and transcendent.

you can never reach or understand

God.v Doctrine of pre-destination: God has

already preselected who will besaved and who shall be

condemened.


11/14

Cotd

v Disworldly Asceticism : Do worldly

things but in a balanced manner.

Accumulated wealth but not to spendluxuriously. In fact re-invest.

v The notion of calling : that all people

have a calling. And to pursue this

calling means doing God will.

v


12/14


13/14

The Spirit of Capitalism

v the spirit of Capitalism encourages Economizing with high moralsignificance.

v The individual carries out capitalisticeconomizing not only to earn alivelihood but by carrying out suchactivities, it would affirm his moralworth.

v

v


14/14

Documents

The Protest Ant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism