Max Weber: Legitimation, Method, and the Politics of Theory

Author(s): Sheldon S. Wolin

Source: Political Theory, Vol. 9, No. 3 (Aug., 1981), pp. 401-424
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc.
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MAX WEBER
Legitimation,Method,and
the Politicsof Theory
S. WOLIN
PrincetonUniversity

SHELDON

AX WEBER IS widely regardedas one of the foundersof

social scienceand probablyitsgreatestpractitioner.
twentieth-century
Modern and ancienttheoristscommonlybelievedthatfounding-or
to collectivelife-was reckonedto be the
givinga formor constitution
mostnotableactionof whichpoliticalman is capable. It is superiorto
othertypesof politicalactsbecauseitaimsto shapethelivesofcitizens
or "dwelling"whichtheyand theirposterity
bydesigningthestructure
will inhabit.In describingthisextraordinary
action,politicaltheorists
often had recourse to architecturalmetaphors:the founder"lays
foundations."No such imageswereinvokedto explaintheroutineacts
that occur in the daily lifeof a polity.Ordinaryaction is commonly
or "bringingsomethingabout." If
describedas "doing," "effecting,"
politicalactorsare to bringsomethingabout, theypresupposeconditionsthatmakepossibletheactionin questicnand themeansfordoing
it. They also presuppose a contextthat permitsthe action to be
The founderis quintessentially
an author
understoodand interpreted.
of politicalpresuppositions.
By analogy, to found a formof social science entailsan act of
demarcationthatindicatesthesubject-matter
peculiarto thescience,the
kindof activitiesthatare appropriate(e.g., empiricalinquiry),and the
normsthatare to be invokedinjudgingthevalueoftheresultsproduced
presuppositions
of subby the activities.These demarcationsbeconme
sequentpractice.Weberwas engagedin foundingwhenhe wrotethe
following:
The historicaland culturalsciences. .. teachus howv
to understandand interpret
and social phenomenaintermsoftheirorigins.Butthey
political,artistic,literary,

POLITICAL THEORY, Vol. 9 No. 3, August 1981401-424

K 1981 Sage Publications,Inc.

401

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402

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

the existenceof thesecultural

give us no answerto the question,whether
havebeenandareworthwhile.... To takea political
standisone
phenomena
structures
andpartypositions
is another.,
andto analyzepolitical
thing,

As thispassage indicates,foundingattemptsto prescribewhatshallbe

consideredlegitimateactivityin a particularfield.
But how does thefounderacquirehisauthority
to grantor withhold
thelegitimator?
who legitimates
That questioncannotbe
legitimation:
posed in isolationfromthe contextin which,typically,it arises.The
foundersofa newsciencearenotinthefortunate
positionofsomeofthe
legendarylegislatorsof antiquitywho wereable to establishconstitutions where none had previouslyexisted. Empty space may be a
geographicaland even a political reality,but it seems not to be a
theoreticalpossibility.
Theoriesare notlikeexplorationswherea flagis
plantedforthefirsttime.Theyare,in therevealinglanguagefrequently
employed,"attacks"upon anothertheory.Theycontestgroundthatis
alreadyheld and so theymustnot onlyestablishtheirown legitimacy
but delegitimate
the prevailingtheoryand its practitioners.

I.
Theoreticalfoundinghas both a politicaldimensionand a politics.
The formeris theconstitutive
activityoflayingdownbasic and general
principleswhich,when legitimated,become the presuppositionsof
practice,theethosofpractitioners.
Thisdefinition
is modeledupon the
Aristotelianconceptionof "the political"(he politike)as the "master
science"thatlegislatesforthegood ofthewholethatis,forthepurpose
ofshapingthewholeto theconceptofthegood relevantto it.Founding
is thuspoliticaltheorizing.
The politicsof founding,or theorydestruction,
refersto thecritical
activityof defeatingrival theoreticalclaims. It is Socrates against
Thrasymachus.This politicsis conductedby meansof strategies(e.g.,
"theSocraticmethod,"Locke's "clearingGrounda little,and removing
some of the Rubbish") and intellectualweapons (various logics,
conceptionsof"facts").The politicsoftheorywas recognizedas earlyas
Plato:
Eleatic.

And whencombattakestheformof a conflictof body

withbody,our naturalappropriatenameforit willbe
force. . ..

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Wolin / MAX WEBER

403

Theaetetus.Yes.
Eleatic.

can
Butwhenitis a conflict
ofargument
withargument,
we call it anythingbut controversy?2

it froma
We may call this"profanepolitics"in orderto distinguish
"higher,"ontologicalpolitics.The latteris illustratedby Aristotle's
lifeis "morethanhuman.... We mustnot
assertionthatthetheoretical
sincewe are (only)
followthosewho adviseus to havehumanthoughts,
to
we
become
On
the
should
immortal."3
men.
contrary,
try
Ontologicalpoliticsis preoccupiedwithgainingaccess to the highest
kindof truth,whichis about thenatureofultimatebeing.The political
theoristseeks thattruthbecause he believesthatit is the truthabout
ofthingsand
power,thepowerthatholds togethertheentirestructure
beings,and holds themtogetherin a perfectly
rightor just way. The
reason why ultimaterealitywas ultimatewas that it containedthe
howto combinevastpower
solutionto thefundamental
politicalriddle.,
to
this
with perfectright.Holding
conceptionof reality,political
theoristsovermanycenturiessoughtto findthewayoforderingthelife
of the collectivityinto a rightrelationshipwith reality,connecting
collectivebeingwithultimatebeingand thereby
assuringthatthepower
oftheonewouldtranslateintothesafetyand well-being
and rightness
of
theother."For all thelaws ofmenare nourishedbyone law,thedivine
law; forit has as muchpoweras it wishesand is sufficient
forall and is
stillleftover."4Politicsat theontologicallevelis different
fromprofane
politics and more intense.Recall Moses's argumentswith Yahweh,
to findevena small
Plato's Phaedrus,or Augustine'stortuousefforts
place forthecivitasterrenain thedivineschemeofthings.The echoesof
ontologicalpoliticscan stillbe heard as late as Max Weber'sfamous
essay "Science as a Vocation":
in itsownterms,itknowsonly
So longas liferemainsimmanentand is interpreted
of an unceasingstruggleofthesegodswithone another.... The ultimately
possible
attitudestoward lifeare irreconcilable,and hence theirstrugglecan neverbe
broughtto a finalconclusion.Thus it is necessaryto make a decisivechoice.5

The pointof engagingin thepoliticsof theoryis to demonstrate

the
of one set of constitutive
superiority
principlesoveranotherso thatin
the futurethesewill be recognizedas the basis of theoreticalinquiry.
Thus the founder'saction preparesthe way for inquiry,that is, for
activitywhichcan proceeduninterruptedly
becauseitspresuppositions
are notin dispute.Inquiryis botha tributeto thetriumphofa particular
theoryand its routinization.Or, to say the same thingdifferently,
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404

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

inquirysignalsthatthe legitimation
struggleis over;it is depoliticized
theory.This explains why inquirersare usually quick to deplore as
"political"(or "ideological")thosewhochallengethedominantpresuppositionsand who seek to refoundthe activity.
As a mode of activity,theorizinghas been conceivedas a performance whose political significanceextends beyond the circle of
theorists.It is intendedas a modelfora newformofpolitics,notonlyin
the manifestsense of presentinga new political vision, but in the
examplarysense of showinghow politicalactionshouldbe conducted
To referto a previousexample,Socratesand Thrasyextra-murally.
machus not only representedopposing conceptionsof theory,one
philosophical and the other rhetorical,and contrastingmodes of
theoreticalaction (Socratic elenchusor cross-examinationversus
Thrasymachus'sset speeches), but also opposing prescriptionsof
governance.Socratesnot onlymaintainsthatthetrueruleris one who
rulesforthebetterment
ofthemembersofthepoliticalcommunity,
but
in the actual courseof thedialogue Socratescan be observedat work
improving
thementaland moralqualitiesoftheparticipants,
including
his opponentThrasymachus.On the otherhand,Thrasymachusboth
maintainsthatrulingis and shouldbe in theinterest
ofthestronger
and
he himselfseeksto overpowerthelistenersbytheforceofhisrhetorical
style,to diminishthemas tyrantsdiminishtheirsubjects.
It is withinthis politicalconceptionof theoryand of theoretical
activitythatI wantto reconsiderMax Weber.The appropriatecontext
foranalyzingthepoliticalnatureof hisactivityas a founderis provided
by the triumphof modernscience.Layingthe foundationsof social
sciencewas a possibleactiononlybecauseoftheprestigeofthenatural
sciences.Modernsciencewas a newformoftheorythatrapidlybecame
paradigmaticforall claimsto theoreticalknowledge.It achievedthat
positionbydefeatingrivalclaimants,suchas philosophy,theologyand
history,and, in thecourseof morethanthreecenturiesofcontroversy,
theirrespectivereality-principles
by delegitimating
(reason,God, and
experience).The spectaculartheoreticaland practicalachievements
of
scienceservedto obscurethelegitimation
crisisthatwas in themaking.
For centuriessciencewas admiredbecause menthoughtit provideda
truepictureof the natureof reality.This had to be so, menreasoned,
becauseoftheenormous,godlikepowerwhichsciencewas increasingly
makingaccessibleto humankind.As long as mencontinuedto believe
that sciencewas merelydecipheringthe laws of naturedecreedby a
beneficent
god,theycould preservesufficient
tracesoftheancientbelief

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Wolin / MAX WEBER

405

that theoreticalknowledgecontinuedto embodythe solutionto the

riddleof powerand right.Veryfewdoubtedthatsciencehad demonstratedits superiorabilityto generatepower. Bacon had compared
ancientphilosophyto boyishpuberty:"it can talk,but cannotgenerate."6
This illusionbegan to dissolve in the nineteenth
century.Science
appearedto be powerwithoutright,an appearancethatbecameall the
more unsettlingwiththe realizationthat sciencewas acknowledging
that,bynature,itwas incapableofsupplyingthemissingcomponentof
rightness,
and yetthe powersmade available by scientific
discoveries
and technologicalinventionswere increasinglybecomingthe main
influencesupon dailylife.Equallyserious,unlikethediscredited
forms
oftheory,suchas philosophy,
and theology,
sciencequa science
history,
ofitsownactivity.Thisproduced
could notevenprovidea justification
a legitimationcrisiswithintheory,or more precisely,withinsocial
science.The triumphofmodernsciencehad discredited
all oftheearlier
formsof politicaltheory(philosophy,theology,and history)as wellas
theirreality-principles
(reason,revelation,and experience).By dintof
this discreditation,social science became the natural successor of
politicaltheory.
to deal withthedevelopingcrisisofthe
Max Weberwas theideal-type
politicalnatureof theoryand the politicsof theorizing.The titleof a
book writtenby his friendKarl Jasperssuggestswhy: Max Weber.
Politiker.
Forscher
(inquirer).Philosoph.
Weberwas a profoundly
politicalman.At severalpointsinhislifehe
to abandoningacademiclife:"I am bornfor
gave seriousconsideration
thepen and thespeaker'stribune,notfortheacademicchair,"he once
wrote.7He was deeplyinvolvedin politicsbeforeand duringthe first
World War and in the briefperiodfromthe armisticeto his death in
1920. Max Weberalso wrotea greatdeal about politics,muchof it in
newspapers,and his formalsociologywas laced withpoliticalthemes.
Yet Weberneversetdowna coherentpoliticaltheorycomparableto the
greattheoriesofthetraditionofpoliticaltheory.Thatinability
maywell
be the meaningof social science.
Although Weber's formal sociology is not much read outside
ofsociologyand hisstudiesofthegreatreligionshavebeen
departments
largelysuperseded,the so-called"methodologicalessays"continueto
attractattention,
especiallyfromphilosophersinterested
in thetopicof
explanation.Virtuallyall discussionsof Weber'smethodologyassume
thathisessayson thatsubjectcan be strictly
separatedfromhispolitical

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406

POLITICAL THEORY

/AUGUST

1981

writings
proper,a distinction
thatwas observedbyWeber'sGerman
editorswho collectedhis PolitischeSchriften
in one volume,his
Aufsatzezur Wissenschaftslehre
in another.Following
thisprinciple,
twoofhisbest-known
and"Scienceas a
essays,"Politicsas a Vocation"
Vocation,"wereassignedto different
volumeson theassumption,
no
doubt,that each represented
a radicallydifferent
conceptionof
onepolitical,
theotherscientific.
vocation,
I shallsuggest,
incontrast,
thattheyarecompanion-pieces,
unitedbycommon
all ofthem
themes,
profoundly
political.I shall suggestfurther
that methodology,
as
conceivedbyWeber,was a typeofpoliticaltheory
transferred
to the
onlyplaneof actionavailableto thetheorist
at a timewhenscience,
andcapitalism
hadclampedtheworldwiththetightening
bureaucracy,
gridofrationality.
ismindengagedinthelegitimation
Methodology
of
itsownpoliticalactivity.

II.
In the Prefatory
Note to Wirtschaft
und Gesellschaft,
Weber
acknowledged
whatmostreaders
havekeenly
thatthediscussion
felt,
is
"unavoidably
abstractand hencegivestheimpression
of remoteness
fromreality."
He explained
thatthe"pedantic"
airoftheworkwasdue
to its objective,
to supplya "moreexactterminology"
for"whatall
empirical
sociology
meanswhenitdealswiththesameproblems."8
really
Whenreaders
first
encounter
hisfamous
threefold
classification
ofideal
typesoflegitimation,
forexample,
theyareapttobepuzzledbecauseof
theabsenceofanyapparent
context.
Webersimply
stipulates
that"there
arethreepuretypesoflegitimate
domination.
Thevalidity
oftheclaims
maybe basedon":
(1) Rational grounds...
(2) Traditionalgrounds.. .
(3) Charismaticgrounds....

The servicebeingrendered"empiricalsociology"was notas innocent

as it was made to appear,eitherin contentor form.The bestowingof
names is, as any readerof the Book of Genesiswill recall,an act of
power, an orderingof the world by specifyingthe place of things.
thebasictermsofsociologyis a constitutive
Establishing
actthatbrings
orderto a distinctrealm,especiallyifthatrealmhas beendisturbedby

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Wolin / MAX WEBER

407

Weber's
controversy,
definition
bya Methodenstreit.
ofthecharismatic
grounds
ofauthority
becomerelevant
atthispoint:"resting
ondevotion
to the exceptional
heroismor examplary
character
of an
sanctity,
individual
or orderrevealed
person,and ofthenormative
patterns
or
ordainedby him."'0In keepingwiththisnoteof theextraordinary
natureofthepattern
represented
bybasicsociological
in
terms,
Weber,
a phrasethatechoestemple
andearlyphilosophers,
prophets
remarked
that
the mostpreciseformulation
cannotalwaysbe reconciledwitha formwhichcan
readilybe popularized.In such cases the latterhad to be sacrificed.
"I

The contextforreadingWeber'sabstract
terms
is political,
andfor
thereadingofhismethodological
it
is
essays politicalandtheoretical.
Wecanbegintoconstruct
thecontext
forhisterminology
the
bynoting
peculiarities
oftranslation
surrounding
Herrschaft.
Itisoften
translated
as "authority,"
butitis notanexactequivalent
ofdieAutoritat;
andthe
of Herrschaft
meaning
is onlyobfuscated
whentranslated
as "imperativecoordination"
byHenderson
and Parsons.'2
Although
Herrschaft
mayrefer
to theestateofa noble,'3a reference
specifically
whichwas
taken up by Weberin his distinctions
betweenpatriarchal
and
patrimonial
dominions,
Herrschaft
connotes"mastery"
typically
and
domination."
ThusWeberwouldwriteaboutthe"domination
(Herrofmanoverman."Thismeansthatwhileinsomecontexts
schaft)
itmay
be perfectly
appropriate
to translateHerrschaft
as "authority"'
or
"imperative
control"
andtoemphasize
theelement
of"legitimacy,"
itis
also important
to attendto theharsherovertones
of Herrschaft
as
domination
becausethesesignify
itsconnection
to a moreuniversal
plane:"Thedecisive
meansforpolitics
isviolence... wholetshimself
in
forpolitics,thatis, forpowerand forceas means,contracts
with

diabolical powers."'4 Conflictand strugglewereendemicin societyas

wellas between
societies.
"'Peace'isnothing
morethana changeinthe
form
ofconflict."'5
EvenwhenWeberaddressed
whatseemedonitsface

a purelymethodologicalquestion,he transformed
it into a political
engagement,stark,dramatic,and, above all, theological.Thus in the
contextof "a non-empirical
approachorientedto theinterpretation
of
meaning,"he wrote:
lt is really a question not only of alternativesbetweenvalues but of an
irreconcilable
death-struggle
like thatbetween'God' and the 'Devil."6

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408

POLITICAL THEORY /AUGUST 1981

Evena casualreaderofWebermustbe struck

of
bytheprominence
in his vocabulary;struggle,
"'power-words"
competition,
violence,
Thewordsindicate
thepresence
domination,
Machtstaat,
imperialism.
a
of a- powerfulpoliticalsensibility
its
seeking way to thematize
itself
politicalness
butfinding
blockedbya paradoxofscientific
inquiry.
Sciencestipulates
thatpoliticalexpression
is prohibited
in scientific
is plainlyofa normative
work,butthestipulation
statusandhenceits
"validity"
(to use Weber'sword)cannotbe warranted
by scientific
procedures
andis,therefore,
inlegitimacy.
Thesamewouldhold
lacking
trueof all prescriptions
forcorrect
scientific
As a conseprocedure.
quence,insteadof a politicsof socialscientific
there
wasthe
theory,
ofanarchy.
possibility
Atthesametime,themodern
theoretical
mindhadcometo regard
thepoliticalandthescientific
as mutually
thepolitical
exclusive:
stood
forpartisanship,
thescientific
forobjectivity.
Sincesciencereigned
as
theparadigmatic
formoftheory
andthepolitical
couldnotbe
impulse
it had'to seek its outlet
directly
expressedin the formof theory,
thecircuitous
elsewhere,
routeofideal-type
through
constructions
and
moretransparently,
as weshallseeshortly,
inthemeta-theoretical
form
of"methodology."
Thismeant,
however,
thatsocialsciencequa science
was unableto externalize
a politicaltheory
andthatWeber'spolitical
views,whichwerestrongly
heldandunhesitatingly
expressed
publicly,
couldnotbe legitimated
in 1917whenhe
byhisscience.Accordingly,
publishedhis remarkable
essay on the postwarreconstruction
of
Germanpoliticalinstitutions,
he feltobligedto prefaceit withthe
disclaimer
that"itdoesnotclaimtheauthority
ofanyscience."'7
Weberpublished
Although
hispoliticalviews,hisefforts
tookthe
formof occasionalpieces.He nevercreateda politicaltheoryeven
themanifest
though
breakdown
ofGerman
andsociety
politics
criedout
forone.Hispolitical-theoretical
wasturned
impulse
inward
uponsocial
sciencewherehe replicated
the problems,
dilemmas,
and demands
whichheperceived
inthe"real"political
world.Forthatimpulse
tobe
Weberhadtofinda wayofmodifying
released,
thescientific
prohibition
againstthe injectionof politicsintoscientific
inquiryand locatea
domainwithin
sciencewherehecouldtheorize
boththeprofane
politics
oftheory
and theontology
oftheory.
Thestrategy
whichhefollowed
thathe attackthepositivist
required
idealofa presuppositionless
and
hence"value-free"
socialsciencebutthat,atthesametime,hedefend
the
scientific
character
ofsocialscienceagainstsubjectivist
conceptions
of
socialinquiry
thatemphasized
personalintuitions
andmoral-political
concerns.
The positivist
positioncalledfortheelimination
of"values"
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Wolin / MAX WEBER

409

could be preserved;Weber
fromscientificwork so that "objectivity""
as theterrainof controversy
and proceeded
acceptedthatformulation
in
so
the
to invest"values"withpoliticalmeaning that,
end,valuesfunctioned as the symbolicequivalentof politics.At the same time,he
itsstarting-point
ofthe"subject,"
adoptedfromthesubjectivist
argument
that is, the inquiringselfwhose passionsthe positivistshad hoped to
overcomeby the rigorsof scientific
method.As thepriceof admitting
the morallypassionatesubject,Weberwas willingto concede to the
positiviststhat this would introducean elementof arbitrariness
into
scientific
investigations,
buthe preferred
to gamblethathecouldrevitalize theconceptionofvocationand makeitintoa prophylactic
thatwould
preventsubjectivity
fromdegenerating
intosubjectivism.
ofscientific
The initialmovethatallowedforthepoliticalpenetration
of social scienceas one ofthe"cultural
workwas in Weber'sdefinition
sciences."This enabled him to exploitwhat he saw as the difference
betweenscienceand culture.The latterwas concernedwith"meaning"
or "patterns"rather
than with predictionsand the closelyassociated
inphenomena.18Weberiansocialsciencewouldbe
notionofregularities
devotedto analyzing"the phenomenaof lifein termsoftheircultural
The social scientist,
significance."
accordingto Weber,deriveshisideas
of what is significantand worthyof investigationfromthe "value"
elementaccompanyingall humanactionsand historicalevents."The
conceptof cultureis a value-concept."'9
Significanceis graspedas well
whichWeberdesignatedas "idealtypes."
as expressedbytheconstructs
Theseare based,he noted,on "subjectivepresuppositions"
and theyare
"formedby the one-sidedaccentuationof one or morepointsofview
and by the synthesis"of numerous"concreteindividualphenomena."
He likenedthemto "a utopiawhichhas beenarrivedat bytheanalytical
accentuationof certainelementsof reality"althoughthey"cannotbe
foundempiricallyanywherein reality."20
The subjectiveelementin theseone-sidedconstructs
formedpartof
Weber'sconceptionof humanlife:"everysingleimportant
activityand
ultimatelylife as a whole .

. is a series of ultimate decisions through

whichthesoul-as in Plato-chooses itsownfate."'21

Thatconception,
firstadvanced in the contextof a methodologicaldiscussion,later
reappearsto color thewholeof Weber'sessayon thepolitical"hero"in
Politicsas Vocation.22
Choice is the essenceof truescienceas it is of
truepolitics:
The objective validityof all empiricalknowledgerestsexclusivelyupon the
orderingof the givenrealityaccordingto categorieswhichare subjective.23

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410

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

a seriesof decisions;it is
Scientificactivity,Weberargued,represents
"always"from"particularpointsof view."24
The effectoftheseformulations
is to politicalizesocialscience,notin
itbyideology,butin an allegoricalsense.
thevulgarsenseofcorrupting
The highestformof available politicsis a politicsof the soul. In the
passage citedearlier,it is revealingthatWebershouldhave referred
to
Plato's conceptionofthesoul. Classicalpoliticaltheorywas remarkable
forits profoundlypoliticalconceptionof the soul. Most readersare
divisionofthesoul (reason,appetite,and
familiarwithPlato'sthreefold
passion)and hiscomparisonofitto the"threeorders"thatwereto "hold
together"hisideal state.25For Weber,thepoliticsofthesoul appearsin
the identicalvirtueswhichhe ascribedto scientific
and politicalman:
"objectivity"or "distance,"1
for the
"passion," and "responsibility"
consequencesof one's choices.
The complexitythatthepoliticsoftheorytook in Weber'scase is all
whenwerealizethatintheearlystagesofhiscareer,
themoreinteresting
long beforehe had becomeembroiledin methodologicalcontroversies,
he had championeda radicallydifferent
view of the relationbetween
social science and politics,a view in which the political natureof
theoretical
was frankly
activity
espoused.It was setout intheinaugural
lecturewhichhe gave at Freiburgin 1895underthetitle,"The Nation
State and PoliticalEconomy."The themeof the lecturewas political
and deliberatelyprovocative.As Weberremarkedshortlyafterwards,
he decided to publishthe lecturebecause of the disagreement
it had
aroused among among his listeners("nichtdie Zustimmung,
sondern
Widerspruch"').26
Midwaythroughthe lecturehe announced,"I am a
memberof the bourgeoisclass and feelmyselfto be such,and I have
beeneducatedin itsoutlookand ideals.Butitis precisely
thevocationof
our scienceto say whatwill be heardwithdispleasure."27
A reader who chances upon the Freiburglectureand who had
associatedWeberwitha strictviewofthefact-value
distinction,
a rigid
commitment
to "ethicalneutrality"
(Wertfreiheit)
and "objectivity,"
and
disdainforprofessors
whoassumedtheroleofpoliticalprophets,
would
be startledto findWeberdeclaringroundlythat"thescienceofpolitical
economyis a politicalscience"and thatit oughtto be "theservant"of
politics;thatthenation-state
is theultimatevalueand politicaleconomy
should be shaped to itsneeds.28In his prescription
forthepoliticalization of thistheoreticalscience,Weberbrokewithcommonbeliefthat
politicaleconomyshould be exploitedto promotethematerialhappiness of society;and he rejectedthesentiment
ofliberalfreetradersthat
economicsshouldservethecause of international
peace by promoting

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Wolin / MAX WEBER

411

divisionof labor. "For the

the ideal of freetradeand an international
dreamof peace and humanity'shappinesstherestandsovertheportals
of the futureof human history:lasciate ogni speranza (abandon all
hope)."29The natureand purposeofpoliticaleconomy,he argued,was
thepowerstrugglesin a Darwinianworld
dicatedby "Machtkampfe,"
wherenations "were locked in an endlessstruggleforexistenceand
"The economicpolicyofa Germanstate,"hewarnedhis
domination."30
academicaudience,"likethenormforGermaneconomictheoreticians,
can onlybe German."3'
The lecturegave nottheslightesthintof a possibletensionbetween
of"die
theconditionsneededforscientific
inquiryand therequirements
derNation."32Equallynotablein thelight
weltlicheMachtorganisation
of Weber's later pessimism,therewas no suggestionthat political
strugglemightbe meaningless.Rathertherewas an air ofexaltationat
forthepreservation
in"theeternalstruggle
theprospectofparticipating
and improvementof our national type,"as though in servingthe
the politicaleconomist
Machtstaatin its quest for "elbow-room"33
placed himselfin contactwiththemostelementalforcein thepolitical
of nationalpowerin the fightforsurvival.
world,the mustering
The explicitlypoliticalconceptionof a social sciencewas, however,
a devastating
nervous
abandonedoverthenextdecade. Webersuffered
disorderin 1898and it was not until1902thathe beganto resumehis
scholarlyactivity.Beginningin 1903 and continuingover the next
severalyears,he publisheda seriesofessayson themethodology
ofthe
social sciences. As we have already noted, in the eyes of later
a self-contained
commentators
and critics,theessaysconstitute
seriesof
of Weber'ssociological
textswhichcan be interpreted
independently
and politicalwritings.They are describedas the"philosophyof social
science" which Weber worked out in the context of the famous
initiatedin 1883by Schmoller'sattackupon Menger
Methodenstreit,
overthe fundamentalnatureof the social sciences.34
This is, as I have suggestedearlier,a fartoo restrictive
contextfor
essaysand forgraspingthemeaningof
interpreting
themethodological
methodology.That contextneedsto be enlargedto accommodateits
author's political concerns.The expressionof these concernswas
evidentin Weber'ssubstantive,
as opposedto hismethodolpowerfully
withthe
ogical, writingsof the same period. Almostsimultaneously
publication(1903-1906)of Weber'sfirstmethodologicalessays,those
dealingwithRoscherand Knies,Weberpublishedwhatis perhapshis
mostfamouswork, The ProtestantEthicand theSpiritof Capitalism
(1904-1905).So muchscholarlyinkhas beenexpendedon thequestion
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412

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

of whetherand in whatsenseWeber"explained"theriseof capitalism

that the political importanceof the work has been almost totally
neglected.Yet it containsthe most extensiveformulationof Weber's
ideal conceptionof thepoliticalactorand themostpolemical,forit is
directedsquarelyat Marxism.Weberwantednot onlyto counterthe
Marxistexplanationof the originsof capitalism,but to celebratethe
ofthecapitalistheroofthepastoverthe
moraland politicalsuperiority
proletarianhero of the presentand future.In these respects,the
ProtestantEthic is a complex work concernedwith the historical
of capitalism.It is complexbecause thatworkalso marks
legitimation
the firstsustaineddiscussionof a themethatwas to preoccupyWeber
of humanexistence.
forthe remainderof his life,the meaninglessness
themehas beenoverlookedinmost
ofa post-theological
Thisintimation
in his
discussionsof Weber'smethodology,
yetit figuresprominently
in Social Science."Meaninglessness
lateressayon "'Objectivity'
was less
a conceptthan a theme.In the ProtestantEthicthecontextforinterpretingit was supplied by anothercrucial theme,"rationalization."
Rationalizationrefersto a worldshaped by what Weber called "the
special and peculiarrationalismof Westernculture."Rationalization
is expressedinthemastery
ofmodernscienceovernatureand ofbureaucraticorganizationoversociety.It signified
thestatusofhumanaction
in a worldwhosestructures
encasedactionin routinesand requireditto
be calculating,instrumentalist,
and predictable.Weberattackedthat
conceptionof action as its mostbasic assumptionthat"self-interest"
is themainmotiveforactionin "capitalisticculture."35
His attackwas
paradoxicalbecause it was conductedthroughthefigureofa fanatical
to capitalaccumulationthatwould
capitalistwho broughtan intensity
convertit into an epic deed, a spiritualtriumph.Puritanzeal would
also be broughtto bearon humanactivity
and toorderitso systematically
that it would generatestructures
of power thatwould transform
the
world. The Puritanwould be, however,a capitalistwithout"purely
eudaemonisticself-interest."
He represented,
instead,an alternative
formof action,theactionofa mandefinedbyhis"calling"orvocation,
a manwho submitsto therequirements
ofa disciplinewithoutmoderating his passion and who displays"a certainascetictendency"for"he
gets nothingout of his wealthforhimself,excepttheirrationalsense
of havingdone hisjob well."36
The Puritanactor of the ProtestantEthic was the prototypefor
Weber'smostfamousideal-types,
PoliticalMan and Scientific
Man and
theirrespectivevocations.His two essays,Politicsas a Vocationand
Scienceas a Vocation,appearedin 1919,duringwhichhe was at work
preparinga revisedversionoftheProtestantEthic.37Butthemodelhad
not only been developed much earlier,it had exerciseda decisive
influenceupon Weber'sconceptionofscientific
activity
at thetimewhen
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Wolin / MAX WEBER

413

evenobsessive,
themethodological
essays.Theexacting,
hewaswriting
forma counterdemandswhichWeberimposedon thesocialscientist
andtotherules
ofScripture
totheletter
adherence
parttotheCalvinist's
is, as we have
The
Calvinist
Puritan
divines.
by
prescribed
of piety
a controlled
with
material
goods
he
but
accumulates
noted,ascetic,
notsimple
of
his
believers
demanded
"TheGod of Calvinism
frenzy.
intoa unified
system."
goodworks,buta lifeofgoodworkscombined
he
orconfessions;
sacraments"
madenoappealto"magical
ThePuritan
to
andproceeded
"methodically"
on"rational
planning"
instead,
relied,
theself.38
hisownconductand,in theprocess,to objectify
supervise
not
to be a modelofrationalself-discipline,
manis likewise
Scientific
butincontrolling
toscientific
protocols,
adherence
onlyinhisscrupulous
thespecialviceofmodern
man,
hisvaluesandbiases,andinsuppressing
man
scientific
Like theCalvinist,
for"self-expression."
his fondness
ofknowledge;
takestheform
yetwhathe
onlyhisactivity
accumulates,
oftheworld.Scienvaluethanotherthings
amasseshasnomorelasting
scientific
manisalso
Finally,
isalwaysbeingsuperseded.
tific
knowledge
ofrenunciation
isdictated
bythedemands
hero.Hisform
a renunciatory
himtoabandonthedelights
oftheRenaisthatrequire
ofspecialization
manwhoseekstodevelopas
idealoftheuniversal
sanceandGoethean
fields
ofknowledge
andas manydifferent
manyfacetsofhispersonality
ofman. . . is a
oftheFaustianuniversality
as possible:"renunciation
ofvaluableworkin themodernworld."39
condition
intheimageof
Theextent
to whichWebershapedhissocialscientist
of
to emulatetheprecision
the Calvinistwentbeyondthe attempt
whichprovedto be an
doctrine,
Calvinism.It extendedto Calvinist
being
thedemandswithout
moveforit meantadopting
extraordinary
themost
faith.In Weber'sportrait,
a comparable
able to presuppose
dedication
furious
to asceticlaboris
feature
oftheCalvinist's
striking
hehasbeen
knowwhether
hisunending
labors,hecannever
that,during
it
his
regardless
he
never
win
own
efforts,
by
for
and
can
chosen election
decreesthat
he tries.Thedogmaofpredestination
ofhowstrenuously
manis
uncertainty.
Scientific
theCalvinist
willlaboramidstunrelieved
of
values"are "a matter
"Ourhighest
in a comparable
predicament.
us towardourscientific
faith."Although
theyarecrucialin orienting
can be assuredthatthese
work,thereis no waythatwe,as scientists,
of secret
ofvalues,liketheknowledge
valuesare "true."Knowledge
whenWeberargued
Appropriately,
electionbyGod,is inaccessible.40
he drewupon the oldest
this pointin the essayon "objectivity,"
parallel:
theological
The fateofan epochwhichhas eatenofthetreeofknowledgeis thatitmustknow
thatwe cannotlearnthemeaningoftheworldfromtheresultsofitsanalysis,be it
everso perfect.4'
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414

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

The fundamental
premisefromwhichWeberarguedforthefact-value
whichoccupiedsuch an importantplace inthe"discipline"
distinction,
of Weberiansocial science,was thatvalueshad to be preservedintheir
state so that human beingswould have to choose.42The
unscientific
existence of the fact/valuedistinctionwas nothingless than the
fundamentalarticle of faith on which restedthe entiredecisionist
of Weber'spoliticsofthesoul. As longas sciencecould not,
framework
in principle,determine
choice,menwereforcedto be freeto choose. In
that formulationone can see the secular equivalentof the age-old
overhumanfreewillversusdivinepredestination,
religiouscontroversy
"laws" take the place of the providentialplan.
only now scientific
effects
of Puritan
Weberlaid special emphasison thetransforming
to businessactivity.It convertedmoneyzeal whenit was transferred
and compemakinginto a moralpraxis,characterizedby selflessness
of
next
theCalvinistspirit
tence.WhenWebertookthe
step transferring
theidea of methodology
to thedomainof social science,he formulated
butas a moralpractice
to serve,not simplyas a guideto investigation
and a mode of politicalaction.The Calvinist,Weberwrote,
of life,slammedthedoor ofthemonastery
strodeintothemarket-place
behindit,
to
and took to penetratejust the daily routineof life,withits methodicalness,
fashionit intoa lifein the world,but neitherof nor forthisworld.43

But as a model for the bios theoretikosthe Calvinistwas worlds

removed from the classical idea of theoryas contemplativeand
reflective.
"Scientificworkis chainedto thecourseof progress... this
progressgoes on ad infinitum."44
As Webersketchedthe Calvinist,he injectedinto his portraitthe
whichhad so sharplydefinedhisownviewof
politicalthemesofstruggle
politics and especiallyof internationalpoliticsas evidencedby the
Freiburglecture.The "heroism"of the Calvinistwas displayedin the
"fight"for"supremacyagainsta wholeworldof hostileforces."In the
end he shatteredthepowersof church,society,and state,usheringin a
new era of "universalhistory."45
"Bourgeoisclasses as such have seldom beforeand neversincedisplayedheroism."46
The bourgeoisactorof Weber'sepic is a politicalherointheclassical
sense. He is a founderofa neworder,theorderofcapitalismwhichhas
transformed
theworld.He can standcomparisonwithanotherhero,the
world-conquering
proletariat,
a comparisonthatpitsa Protestanthero
againsta classicallyinspiredone. Marx, particularly
in hiswritings
of
the early 1840s,likenedthe proletariatto Prometheus,the rebellious
god who saved mankindfromdestruction
bybringing
itthetechniques
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Wolin / MAX WEBER

415

herosignifies
of materialproduction.
Whiletheproletarian
material
hence
the
of
and
andcultural
deprivation
implies promise gratification,
herowhodisdains
thematerial
is a renunciative
theProtestant
sensuous
pleasureseagerlysoughtby thematerially
deprivedand sensuously
A majordifference
starved
manoftheParisManuscripts.
between
the
twoepicsis that,unlikeMarx,Weberknewthathewascomposing
a
setin and
of thelast herobeforetheage of rationalization
portrait
rendered
bothheroes,Marx'sandhisown,anachronisms.
Henceforth,
actionwillbe determined
thepossibilities
ofsignificant
andlimited
by
theconstraints
IntheclosingpagesoftheProtestant
ofrationalization.
intheimagery
ofthe"ironcage."
Ethicthefateofactionis described
The ironcage is a symbolwithmanymeanings.
It symbolizes
the
transformation
of vocationfroma religious
and moralchoiceto an
economicnecessity.It also signifies
our helplessness
before"the

tremendouscosmos of the moderneconomicorder. . . whichtoday

thelivesofallwhoarebornintothismechanism."
Andthe
determine[s]
ironcagestandsforthestageof"victorious
whenthesocial
capitalism"
oftheasceticfor"itrestson
ordernolongerneedsthespiritual
devotion
mechanical
foundations."47
ofexistence
The rationalization
foreshadowed
bytheironcagebecamea leitmotif
inallofWeber's
subsequent
writings.
Thecageisiron
becausethe main forcesof modernlife,science,capitalism,
and
bureaucratic
organization
aretriumphs
ofrationality
andso themind
has no purchase
pointto attackthem.Theyaremindincarnated
into
legal codes and administrative
organizations
that promiseorder,
predictable
ofprocedures,
decisions,
regularity
andresponsible,
objective,and qualifiedofficials;
intoeconomies
thatoperateaccording
to
ofcalculated
principles
advantage,
andmeans-ends
efficiency,
strategies;
andintotechnologies
thatpromote
standardization,
mechanical
behavior,and uniform
tastes.The advantages
ofrationalization
intermsof
powerandmaterial
satisfaction
areso overwhelming
thatthehistorical
processwhichhasbrought
thatsystem
is"irreversible."
But,finally,
the
cageis ironbecause"thefulfillment
ofthecallingcannotdirectly
be
relatedto thehighest
spiritual
and cultural
values."Insteadof being
fired
byreligious,
ethical,
andpolitical
ideals,actionhasbecomesimply
a response
to"economic
compulsion"
orto"purely
mundane
passions."48
Actionwithout
thepassionsthatWeberassociated
withspiritual
and
moralidealswas"meaningless,"
a category
thatbecamea majoronein
Weber's
thinking
henceforth.
Meaninglessness
wasofspecialconcern
in
themethodological
essaysbecauseof thecentralpartwhichmodern
sciencehadplayedindestroying
thesources
ofmeaning.
Capitalism
and
bureaucratization
mayhaveproduced
thesocialandpolitical
structures
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416

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

of rationalizationbuttheequationofrationalization
withmeaninglessof modernscience. Science had
ness was the special responsibility
attackedreligious,moral,and metaphysical
beliefsand had insistedthat
everything
could,in principle,be reducedto rationalexplanation.Such
explanationshad no needofgods,spirits,revelations,
and metaphysical
principles.The resultwas a bare world, denuded and drained of
to replenishing.
meaning,whichsciencemakesno pretense
Sciencedeals
withfact,materialreality,and rationaldemonstration.
It is so helpless
to restorewhatit has destroyedthat,qua science,itcannotevenjustify
its own value. Its own activitycomes perilouslyclose to being the
definitionof meaninglessness:
"Chained to the courseof progress,"its
"fate"is that"it asks to be 'surpassed'and outdated."49
The inherentlimitationsof science,its inabilityto make good the
deficienciesof the world's meaning,provide the backdrop to the
politicalroleofthemethodologist.
His taskis notto undertake
scientific
or evento instruct
investigations
hisco-workers
on how bestto conduct
research,muchless to offera specialfieldofstudy.Ratheritis to show
them that significantaction in theirchosen realm is possible. It is,
a formof politicaleducationin themeaningof vocation.Its
therefore,
politicalnesscomesfromtheseriousness,
evenurgency,
oftherelationship betweenvocationalactionand the world.
In orderto bringouttheunusualnatureofWeberianmethodology,
a
slightexcursionis necessary,
butitwillbe onethatwillreestablish
direct
contactwithouroriginalconcern:socialscienceas thepostmodern
form
of political theory.Previouslywe had noted that Weber frequently
assertsthatsciencecannotvalidatethelegitimacy
of itsown authority.
Thisassertioncalls attention
to theinteresting
consideration
thatWeber
never attemptedin any systematicfashionto apply his conceptsof
legitimeHerrschaft
to science,eventhoughthe significance
of science
forthemajorconceptionsof legitimate
is clear.For example,
authority
given Weber'sdefinitionof "traditionalauthority"as "restingon an
establishedbeliefin the sanctityof immemorialtraditionsand the
legitimacy
ofthestatusofthoseexercising
authority
underthem,"50
itis
clearthatscience,whichstrivesto be "outdated,"is hostileto thatform
ofauthority.
Further,
pace Kuhn,scienceas an institutionalized
activity
appears to be consistentwith the "rational-legal"type of authority
whichrestson "a beliefinthe'legality'ofpatterns
ofnormative
rulesand
the rightof those elevated to authorityunder such rules to issue
commands."151
But the mostinteresting
questionconcernsthepossible
relationsbetweenscienceand charisma,the formof authoritywhich
appears,on its face,to be the least hospitableto science.Charismatic
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Wolin/ MAX WEBER

417

as we have alreadynoted,restson "devotionto thespecific

authority,
sanctity,heroism,or exemplarycharacterof an individualperson,and
ofthenormativepatternsor orderrevealedorordainedbyhim."52
Now,
althoughWeberneverexplicitlyconnectedscienceand charisma,there
is a sufficient
numberof scatteredcluesto suggestthattheconnection
was in hismind.Scienceis charisma"ina godlessand prophetless
time"
and it is displayedby the person "withan inwardcalling"who can
endurethat"theworldis disenchanted."53
It is forthechosenfew,"the
affairof an intellectual
It is,above all, charismabecause
aristocracy."54
sciencerequires"inspiration"(Eingebung)."It has nothingto do with
anycold calculation."55
Weber'sdiscussionofinspiration
is compressed
but highlysuggestive."Psychologically,"
he declared,inspirationwas
relatedto "frenzy"
or"Plato's 'mania"'-a reference
to thediscussionof
"divine madness" in the dialogue Ion. "Whetherwe have scientific
inspiration,"he continued,"dependsupon destiniesthat are hidden
fromus, and besidesupon 'gifts."'56
"Gifts"(Gabe)clearlyrefersto a
charismatic
qualityforelsewhereWeberdefinedcharismaas "thegiftof
grace," a phrase which he took the pains to associate with "the
vocabularyofearlyChristianity."57
of"grace"
Althoughthesignificance
(Gr. caris) was not explicitlyconnectedby Weberto his discussionof
science,a briefaccount of thattermshould immediately
establishits
relevancein the highlydecisionisticframeworkof Weberiansocial
science.
In theNew Testament,"grace"refersto theidea ofGod's redemptive
love whichis alwaysactivelyat workto save sinnersand maintainthem
in therightrelationship
to Him. Grace is God's freegift,and whileitis
nottheresultofmanhavingearnedit,thereis stillan elementofchoice,
though an ambiguous one: "work out your own salvation," Paul
exhortedhis followers,"withfearand trembling;
forGod is at workin
you" (Phil. 2:12-13).
Fromtheseconsiderations
we can distillthreeelementsintheidea of
charisma: a "gifted"exceptional person of heroic or risk-taking
qualities; a normativepatternthat he ordains and that gives him
authority;
and theelementofchoice,bothforthecharismatic
figurewho
commitshimselfto the revelationentrustedto himand fortheothers
who mustdecide whetherto followhim.Throughout,the decisionist
element("workout yourown salvation")restsuneasilywitha necessitarianone ("God is at workin you"). All of theseelementsreappearin
Weber'smethodologicaldiscussions.
Butwhatis themeaningofmethodology?
Whatis itsconnectionwith
thedisenchantedworldand itsmeaninglessness?
How does itcompare
as a formof actionwithpoliticaltheory?
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418

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

The word"methodology"
did not come intouse untilthenineteenth
centuryand it was mostlyemployedin scientific
discussions,at least
duringthe firsthalf of the century.Its etymologyis revealing.It is
derivedfromtwoGreekwords,mehodus and logos. Methodusis itself
an interesting
compoundofmetaand hodos. Meta,whichis characteristicallyused as a prefix,had some meaningsthatbristlewithpolitical
overtones.Theyinclude:sharing,actionin common,pursuitor quest.
Hodos, on theotherhand,means"way."It is one oftheoldestwordsin
the historicallexicon of Greek philosophy.The pre-Socratics,for
example,typicallydescribedphilosophyas a "way"to thetruthor even
as a "6way"to ultimateBeing. Ancientphilosophy,we should recall,
deliberatelychallengedreligion,myth,and tradition;its "way" often
provoked opposition,even danger. Thus Parmenidesdescribedhis
"way" as "strife-encompassed."58
Logos is probablytherichestwordintheentirevocabularyofancient
philosophyand theology.It has meant:account,explanation,truth,
theory,reason,and, moresimply,word. Amongseveralof its usages
thereis a recurrent
element:logos as signifying
thetruththatresidesin
the deepest layer of Being and that the logos has succeeded in
embodying.It is represented
by a phrasefromParmenides:"thesame
thingexistsforthinkingand forbeing."59
Methodologymightthenbe renderedas thepoliticalaction(meta)
which thoughttakes on the route (hodos) to being (logos). Weber
referred
to itas "metatheoretical."60
The reasonforthisdesignation
had
to do withthepoliticalnatureofthecrisiswhichgivesmethodology
its
raison d'Wtre,the kind of crisis experienced by Weber and his
in thecourseof theMethodenstreit
contemporaries
whenthenatureof
thesocial sciencesqua sciencewas beingcontested.Webertookspecial
painsto definethemeaningofcrisisso thatthefunction
ofmethodology
could be made clear. Methodology,he insisted,does not legislate
methods;these are "establishedand developed" by practicingsocial
scientistsin thecourseof dealingwith"substantive
problems.""Purely
epistemologicaland methodologicalreflections
have neverplayedthe
crucialrole in such developments."61
Crisescome about becauseofthe
dependence of social scientistsupon "evaluativeideas" which give
"significance"to theirwork. The "foundation"forempiricalinquiry
comesnotfromempiricaldata butfrom"themeta-empirical
validityof
ultimatefinalvalues in whichthemeaningof our existenceis rooted."
Thesefoundations,
however,tendto shiftand evencrumblebecauselife
itselfis "perpetuallyin flux.... The lightwhichemanatesfromthese
highestevaluativeideas fallson an everchangingfinitesegmentof the
vast chaotic stream of events which flows away throughtime."62
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Wolin / MAX WEBER

419

Meanwhile,researchers
graduallylose theirimmediateawarenessofthe
"ultimaterootedness"in values oftheirown research.The resultis that
researchfalters."The significanceof the unreflectively
utilizedviewpointsbecomesuncertain"in the mindof the researcher.
"The road is
lost in the twilight."This crisiscreatesthe opportunity
forthetypeof
intervention
associatedwithmethodology:
Science... preparesto changeitsstandpointand itsanalyticalapparatusand to
viewthe streamof eventsfromthe heightsof thought.63

The methodologist
seizestheopportunity
to showtheresearcher
that
sciencecannot flourishwithout"evaluativeideas" forit is thesethat
nourishnotionsof whatis "significant"
and henceworthyof inquiry.
"Significance"becomes the crucial concept in Weber's politics of
knowledge.It symbolizesthemomentoffreedomforthesocialscientist
when he registershis affirmations,
when he exchangesthe settled
routinesof inquiryfor the risks of action. It is akin to a formof
momentary
and secularsalvationforitcreatesmeaningin an otherwise
meaninglessworld."'Culture',"Weberdeclared,"is a finitesegmentof
the meaninglessinfinityof the world process,a segmenton which
humanbeingsconfer meaning and significance."Humans impart
significanceby takingup "a deliberateposture(Stellung)
towardsthe
world."s64

The politicsof mindin itsstruggles

againstmeaninglessness
findsits
mostpowerfulexpressionin Weber'sconceptionof"idealtypes."These
are the mostcrucialinstruments
of social scientific
inquiryand hence
theirnaturebecomesall-important.
Ideal typesare constructs
created
bythesocial scientist
to rendera particularhistoricalrealityintelligible
and coherent.They are constructedby abstractingfeaturesof a
phenomenon(e.g., capitalismor bureaucracy)and reconstructing
them
to forman internally
consistentwhole.Ideal typesare, Weberemphasized, deliberatelyconstructedto be "one-sided";theyare meantnot
onlyto accentuatethe phenomenaunderstudyand therebyleave the
investigator's
markon a portionoftheworld,butto accentuateas well
the value-orientations
of the investigator.
Ideal types"illuminate. .
reality"althoughtheycannot"exhaustits infiniterichness":
Theyare all attempts... to bringorderintothechaos ofthosefactswhichwe have
drawninto the fieldcircumscribed
by our interest.65

The investigatordoes not usually face a situationwhere no prior

constructs
exist.Ratherhe is facedwiththechallengeofovercoming
the
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420

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

constructs
of thepast.It is notsurprising,
to findWeber's
therefore,
oftheuse ofideal-types
description
reminiscent
ofdescriptions
ofthe
agonofclassicalpolitics.Inherited
constructs
are"inconstant
tension
withthenewknowledge
whichwe cananddesiretowrest
from
reality.
ofcultural
scienceoccursthrough
Theprogress
thisconflict."66
as a meansof provoking
a
Weberlooked upon the ideal-type
"confrontation
withempirical
Thissomewhat
curious
formureality."67
lation reflectsthe largerproblemof politicalaction in a world
Wheretheorists
of earliertimeswere
;dominated
by hugestructures.
of
the
difficulties
ofmaintaining
haunted
bythefragilityorderandby
it,
from
a surfeit
oforder.Orderisthe
postmodern
theory
appearstosuffer
Andultimately,
ofcourse,the
ofpostmodern
empirical
reality
theory.
thesamefateas thepolitical
heroandall
willsuffer
heroicmeta-theorist
Themeta-theorist
isreplaced
hisagonwillbe routinized.
charismatics:
themeta-politician
bythenormalsocialscientist,
bythetechnician.
is not,perhaps,a greatloss.He has
The fateofthemeta-theorist
hismethodology
a displaced
form
of
turned
outtobea theorist
manque,
thewallsoftheacademybutserving
within
politicaltheory
confined
a
As practiced
function
onceremoved.
legitimating
byWeber,methodforsocialscience,
whilesocialsciencetacitly
a rationale
ologyprovides
formoflegitimacy
bestows
thepeculiar
thatiswithin
itspowertogrant,
of facticity,
of fact.AgainsttheHerrschaft
thelegitimacy
ideal-type
affordonlya smallpurchase-point
forcriticism.
constructions
Idealfora theoretical
typescannotserveas substitutes
an
counterparadigm,
to
what
is
too
often
the
alternative
vision
case.Weber's
ownviewsabout
thatwhilean ideal-type
confirm
bureaucracy
construction
mayhighlight
how bureaucracy
trivializes
politicsand reduceshumanbeingsto
theonlyrational
choiceis resignation
classifications,
before
itsmassive
"The needs of mass administration
facticity:
make [bureaucracy]
completely
indispensable."68
Weber'storment
wasthatwhileheprophesied
"a polarnightoficy
darkness
andhardness"
anda totally
bureaucratized
condition
wherein
mankind
wouldbe "as powerless
as thefellahsofancientEgypt,"69
he
couldneither
turntheory
againstscience-for
sciencewastheory-nor
venture
uponthequestforan ontology.
His torment
was expressed,
paradoxically,
at theontological
levelwhichsciencehad completely
destroyed:
Thereare no mysterious
incalculableforces.... One can, in principle,masterall
thingsby calculation.This means the world is disenchanted.... [In antiquity]
everybodysacrificedto the gods of his city,so do we stillnowadays,only the
bearingof man has been disenchantedand denudedof itsmysticalbutinwardly
genuineplasticity.
Fate,and certainly
not'science'holdsswayoverthesegods and
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Wolin/ MAX WEBER

421

whatthegodheadisfortheoneorderor
Onecanonlyunderstand
theirstruggles.
whatgodheadis in theone or theotherorder.Withthis
theother,or better,
has reacheditslimitsso faras it can be
thematter
however,
understanding,
andbya professor.70
ina lecture-room
discussed

Weber's ontologicalpolitics,populatedwiththe furiousstrugglesof

gods and demons,and seeminglyso incongruousin the thoughtof a
studyof societyand politics,issuesfromthe
founderof the scientific
frustration
of a consciousnessthat knowsthat its deepestvalues are
areto theenemy.
owed to religionbutthatitsvocationalcommitments
Science has caused the meaningof the universeto "die out at itsvery
power."'"The tensionleft
[an] irreligious
root." Scienceis "specifically
Weberambivalenttowardscience:"I personallyby myverywork...
affirmthe value of science . . . and I also do so frompreciselythe
as the worstdevil."'72
standpointthathates intellectualism
of
this
rendition
The dramatic
ontologicalpoliticswherescience
destroysthepossibilityof politicalrenewalis in a figurethatreappears
of
theprophet.The personalsignificance
in Weber'swritings,
frequently
the prophetis obscured because, as was his custom,Weber would
frequentlythrow out sarcastic referencesabout professorsplaying
prophet,or about thosewho "cannotbear the fateof thetimeslikea
man" and forwhom"thearmsoftheold churchare openedwidelyand
compassionately."73
But,ofcourse,itwas Weber'spropheciesthathave
enduring;notso muchbecausetheysee intothefuture
made hiswritings
but because they reveal him deeply engaged with the powers that
science,violence,and
dominatethesoul of modernman: bureaucracy,
thathas destroyedthespiritualresourceson which
the"intellectualism"
humankindhas fedforthreethousandyearsor more. Prophecy,like
religion,was a politicalsymbolforWeber,as evidencedbyhistreatment
of the Old Testamentprophets.They were, in his eyes,supremely
political figureswho "stood in the midst of theirpeople and were
Theypracticeda
concernedwiththefateofthepoliticalcommunity."74
theirpeopleinthemidstof"political
"propheticpoliics"whileexhorting
in the age of
disaster."75Prophecy,we mightsay, is closet-theory
science.It achievedpathos in The ProtestantEthic and the Spiritof
Capitalism,not in the closing pages where Weber pronouncedhis
whichhe
famousjeremiadabout the"ironcage,"butintheintroduction
wroteshortlybeforehisdeath.Theyare powerfulpagesand can onlybe
This was because thebook,
describedas akin to a secularcrucifixion.
hero
and theprophecyaboutthefutureand themythsoftheProtestant
ofthepast,was consideredto be an invasionofspecialfieldsorpreserves
of scholarlyexperts,"trespassing"as Webercalled it. Acknowledging
thathe had violatedthescientific
divisionof labor,he was preparedto
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422

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

himself
is entitled
toa finaljudgment"
offer
up fortrial."Thespecialist
To do otherwise
wouldbe to
and "one musttaketheconsequences."
thespecialist
belowthe"seer.""Whoever
"degrade"
wantsa sermon,"
"shouldgo to a conventicle."76
He then
Weberwrotecontemptuously,
endson an equivocalnotethatgivesa glimpseofhisownagony:
It is truethatthepathofhumandestiny
cannotbutappallhimwhosurveys
a
ofit.Buthewilldowelltokeephissmallpersonal
section
commentaries
tohimself,
oftheseaorofmajestic
as onedoesatthesight
unless
mountains,
heknows
himself
to be calledandgifted
to givethemexpression
in artistic
or prophetic
form.77

ofWeber'sequivocation
Thefeebleness
corresponded
tothepowerlessnessoftheprophet
in a "prophetless
andgodless"world.Meaninganaesthetic
lessness
wasnolonger
ofthefew,buta contagion.
experience
Havingundermined
religious,
moral,andpolitical
beliefs,
theforces
of
rationalization
hadfinally
exposedthemeaning
ofmeaninglessness
to
be powerwithout
right.

NOTES
1. "Science as a Vocation," FromMax Weber:
trans.H. H.
Essaysin Sociology,
Gerthand C. WrightMills(New York,1946),p. 145.Hereafter
thisvolumewillbe referred
to as FMW.
2. Sophists
225 A-B, trans.A. E. Taylor(London, 1971).
3. Nicomachean
Ethics,1177b.25ff.,trans.M. Ostwald(Indianapolis,1962).
4. "Heraclitus,"frag.253, ThePresocratic
ed. G. S. Kirkand J. E.
Philosophers,
Raven (Cambridge,1957),p. 213.
5. FMW,p. 152.
6. "The GreatInstauration,"Prefacein SelectedWritings
ofFrancisBacon,ed. H.
G. Dick (New York: Modern Library,1955),p. 429.
7. WolfgangMommsen,Max Weber
unddiedeutsche
Politik,
1890-1920(Tubingen,
1959),p. 279. See also thefinestudyby David Beetham,Max Weber
andtheTheory
of
ModernPolitics(London, 1974); and AnthonyGiddens,Politicsand Sociologyinthe
7hought
of Max Weber
(London, 1972).
8. Economy
andSociety,
ed. GuentherRothand Claus Wittich,3 vols. (New York,
1968),Vol. 1, p. 3. Hereafterthiswill be citedas E & S.
9. Ibid., p. 215.
10. Ibid.
11. Ibid., p. 3.
12. Max Weber,TheTheory
ofSocialandEconomic
Organization
(New York,1947),
p. 152 (n. 83).
13. See the commentsof the editors,E & S, Vol. 1, pp. lxxxviii-ix.
14. "Politicsas a Vocation,"FMW,pp. 121, 123.
15. Max Weber,TheMethodology
oftheSocialSciences.
trans.E. A. Shilsand H. A.
Finch (Glencoe, IL, 1949),p. 27. Hereafterreferred
to as Methodology.
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Wolin / MAX WEBER

423

16. Methodology,p. 17.

17. E & S, Vol. III, P. 1381.
18. Methodology,p. 74 ff.
19. Ibid., p. 76. (emphasisin original).
20. Methodology,p. 90. (emphasisin original)
21. Ibid., p. 18.
22. FMW, p. 128.
23. Methodology,p. 110 (emphasisin original)
24. Ibid., p. 81.
25. Republic440 B, E, 442 B-D. See also Aristotle,NicomacheanEthics1.2. 1094a271094b5.
2nded., ed. J. Winckelmann
26. GesammeltePolitischeSchriften,
(Tubingen,1958),
to as GPS.
p. 1. Hereafterreferred
27. Ibid., p. 20.
28. Ibid., p. 14 (emphasisin original)
29. Ibid., p. 12.
30. Ibid., pp. 12, 14.
31. GPS, p. 13.
32. Ibid., p. 14.
33. "elbow-roomin earthlyexistencewillbe won onlybya hardstruggleofmanwith
man." Ibid., p. 12.
34. Examples of this genre are: W. G. Runciman,A Critiqueof Max Weber's
Philosophyof Social Science (Cambridge,1972); R. S. Rudner,Philosophyof Social
Science (Englewood Cliffs,NJ, 1966), p. 68 ff; Dieter Henrich, Die Einheit der
Wissenschaftslehre
(Tubingen,1952); and the introductory
essays of Guy Okes to his
translationsof Weber'sRoscherand Knies(New York, 1975)and Critiqueof Stammler
(New York, 1977).
35. The ProtestantEthic and the Spirit of Capitalism,trans. Talcott Parsons
to as PE
(London, 1930),p. 78. Hereafterreferred
36. PE, p. 37.
37. See the translator'snote,Ibid., p. ix.
38. Ibid., pp. 117, 153.
39. PE, p. 180.
40. Methodology,p. 52.
41. Methodology,p. 57.
42. Ibid., p. 19.
43. PE, p. 154.
44. FMW, pp. 137, 138.
45. PE, pp. 56, 63, 13.
46. Ibid., p. 37.
47. PE, pp. 181-82.
48. PE, p. 182.
49. FMW, pp. 137, 138.
50. E & S, Vol. 1, p. 215.
51. Ibid. Note thepersonalremarkin"Scienceas a Vocation"whereWebernotesthat
in promotingyoungscholarshe followedthe practicethat"a scholarpromotedby me
mustlegitimize
and habilitatehimself
withsomebodyelseat anotheruniversity."
FM W,p.
130.
52. E & S, Vol. 1, p. 215.
53. FMW, pp. 148, 153, 155.
54. Ibid., p. 134.
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424

POLITICAL THEORY / AUGUST 1981

55. Ibid., p. 135.

56. Ibid., p. 136; GA W,p. 591.
57. Ibid. The scripturalpassage thatseemsclosestis Romans 3:24.
58. fr.345 in G. S. Kirkand J. E. Raven, ThePre-socraticPhilosophers(Cambridge,
1957),p. 271.
59. fr.344 in Kirkand Raven, p. 269.
60. Roscherand Knies,p. 58.
61. Methodology,p. 116. (emphasisin original)
62. Ibid., p. 111.
63. Ibid., p. 112.
64. Methodology,p. 81. (emphasisin original)
65. Methodology,p. 105.
66. Ibid.
67. Ibid., p. 110.
68. E & S, Vol. 1, p. 223.
69. FMW, p. 128; E & S, Vol. III, p. 1402.
70. FM W, pp. 139, 148.
71. Ibid., p. 142.
72. Ibid., p. 152.
73. FMW, p. 155.
74. AncientJudaism,trans.H. H. Gerthand Don Martindale(Glencoe,IL, 1952),p.
299. 1 have slightlyrevisedthe translation.
75. Ibid., pp. 301, 319.
76. The ProtestantEthic,pp. 28, 29.
77. Ibid., p. 29.

Sheldon S. Wolinis Chairmanof the GraduatePoliticalPhilosophyProgramat

Princetonand theauthorof Politicsand Vision.He is also editorof democracy.

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