Karl Max and Max Weber were two great theorists who greatly contributed to the field of sociology with their thoughts and beliefs. Their theories have been used for many years in given aspects of life such as governance and economics. They wrote and talked about many things about sociology, economy and other fields that affect human in a way or another on daily basis. This essay will compare Karl Max and Max Weber based on their thoughts, methodology and the theories they came up with.
Both Marx and Weber use positivism approaches in their works in sociology. Their works and analyses show the acceptance of positivism, deriving their beliefs and approaches from Kantian theories. Additionally, both Marx and Weber believed they were scientists, not with the aim of using the mainstream scientific methods in their work but, like Einstein, using science to develop a logical framework for themselves and the future sociologists (Williams, 2005). The two theorists also use the analyses of time and historical occurrences in relation to the development of capitalism. This is seen in their consensus about the existence of social classes upon which they base their arguments on capitalism.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
There are also differences between the two theorists. Karl Max was a strong advocate of socialism and believed that capitalism will pave way to socialism or communism in an economic revolution by the workers. To him, social stratification was based on two classes; the owners and the workers. The owners, he believed, held control of the means of production while the workers provide labour in exchange of wages by working on the means of production. According to Williams (2005), Karl Marx believed that the capitalism model of economy exploited the workers in search of labour and paid them little thus creating the economic gap between the owners and the workers. The owners of means of production earned so much as compared to the workers who did much of the work. This inequality was undeserved according to Marx and he predicted that at one point, workers would revolt against it and adopt socialism. Communism was the ideal model of development and equality in the public and private sector as well as forms of governance.
He also believed that most governments are run on the capitalism model, where the ruling class and the very rich have their interests taken care of though there are claims that the interest of the common man is considered. Capitalism, according to Marx, produced so much tension within its systems that eventually would lead to self-destruction. This would become possible when the working class became conscious of their being exploited and as a result turn against the owners. As a result of the revolution foreseen by Marx, capitalism would crumble paving way for the classless socialism (Schumpeter, 2013).
Max Weber on the other hand was also a great contributor to modern sociology but with distinctive differences from the Marxism theory. He believed that religion, specifically Protestantism, could be attributed to capitalism. His argues that Protestantism encouraged believers to work hard, accumulate wealth and invest in different ways as a vocation. As a result people work more and more, making so much money and investing the same in ways they believe would benefit them. As time went by, communities adopted the system and eroded the religious bit of it. This eventually led to the development and spread of capitalism which to him is an economic model that contributes to and enhances inequality (Weber, 2002).
Unlike Karl Marx, Weber had a different view on social stratification as causes of capitalism as stated by Marx. To him stratification was not just about the owners of production means and workers plus the difference in their wages; it went beyond that. Stratification also involved issues that came with accumulation of wealth which include prestige and power. To him people would work hard and earn more; become rich, because richness is associated with prestige in many communities. As seen, Weber viewed Marx’s theory on the conflict between the rich and the workers as an inevitable thing since people will be working had, aiming for more than wealth accumulation; attaining power and the social prestige within the community. To Weber, different people had different interests such as prestige and status and thus would work towards achieving such, obscuring social stratification in the process (Giddens, 2012)
Weber and Marx also differ on their methods and approaches used to develop their arguments. Marx focused on the groups of people; the community, whereas Weber focused his arguments on individuals and culture. This is evident in his argument about social classes as he views it as a culture that develops among the people and nothing can stop it. Weber also believed that ideas govern individual’s ability to prosper as they use them to determine what they want to do and where they want to be. This is different in Marx’s belief that materials and culture largely influence the prosperity of the community; the metaphysical theory of history (Giddens, 2012). According to metaphysical theory, historical changes were mainly contributed to by materialism in the world, something that Weber found difficult to accept. Another way Weber approached his works was by differentiating economy and technology in the ways they contributed to the development of capitalism. This is different form Karl Marx who seems to have merged the two and used them as one. For example, his argument about development of capitalism as a result of the steam mill to replace the hand mill; using the hand mill hand more people employed than the steam mill.
References
Giddens, Anthony. (1970) Marx, Weber, and the Development of Capitalism. Sociology 4 (3), 289-310
Schumpeter, J. A. (2013). Capitalism, socialism and democracy . Routledge.
Weber, M. (2002). The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism: and other writings. Penguin.
Weber, M. (2009). From Max Weber. Essay in Sociology . Routledge.
Williams, Gavin. The Holy Trinity, or the Reduced Marx, Weber, Durkheim. Christianity and social change in Africa: essays in honor of JDY Peel. Ed. Toyin Falola. Carolina Academic Press. (2005).
