Page 117 - DSOC401_SOCIOLOGICAL_THOUGHT_ENGLISH

Sukanya Das, Lovely Professional University Unit-18: Max Weber: Intellectual Background

unit-18: max Weber: intellectual background notes

contents
Objectives
Introduction

18.1 Subject Matter
18.2 Influence on Weber’s thinking
18.3 Summary
18.4 Keywords
18.5 Review Questions

18.6 Further Readings

objectives

After studying this unit, the students will be able to:
y Know about the life of Max Weber,
y Understand the thoughts of Max Weber,
y Know the decisions of Weber’s ideologies.

introduction

Max Weber was not only a sociologist but also an economist, jurist, historian and a philosopher. He
had emphasised on the deep observation, reflection and thought of the social events and life. He had
adopted practical outlook towards understanding social events. In short, original attribute of Max
Weber was to understand the social events and circumstance on the basis of interpretation. Weber’s
thought is that we cannot understand social events and circumstance until their rational interpretation
is not presented. That is why Max Weber is called the father if interpretative sociology. In the definition
of sociology only Weber’s thoughts may be understood. As per Weber, “sociology is that science that
attempts to make a meaningful (interpretative) realization of social action through which a reasonable
interpretation of its (social action) activities and results may be presented.” It is clear that the great job
that Weber has done it was not possible without a special type of successful scholar. Weber had built
life and thought even in the tension of various hostile elements. He has himself written, “If a person
is not like an open book then we should not expect his multifaceted personality.”

18.1 subject matter

Max Weber was born on 21 April, 1864 in Erfurt, Thuringia. His father, Saint Max Weber was a trained
st
legal scholar and council advisor. They were related to a silk trader and cloth manufacturer family
of western Germany. In the year 1869, Weber family moved to Berlin, which was soon to become the
flourishing capital of Bismarck. After going there Weber became a prosperous politician and he took

LoVeLY professionaL uniVersitY 111