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Politics as a VocationFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Politics as a Vocation (Politik als Beruf) is an essay by German economist and sociologist Max Weber. Itoriginated in a lecture he gave to the Free Students Union of Munich University, in January 1919, during theGerman Revolution.

In his essay Weber states that politics is the art of compromise and decision making based on social benefitsweighed against costs; in this respect, political action cannot be rooted only in conviction, since one'sconviction can be another's social anathema. Using as an example Christianity, seen as a core conviction,Weber affirms that a politician cannot only be a man of "true Christian ethic" (understood in terms "turning theother cheek"). The political realm is no realm for saints. A politician should marry the ethic of ultimate endswith an ethic of responsibility. The latter, which is the ultimate criterion for judging politicians, should takeinto account all that is at stake in making a political decision, namely all the convictions and the relative weightand moral importance. A politician must possess both passion for his vocation and the capacity to distancehimself from the subject of his exertions (the governed).

The lecture introduces a definition of the state that has become pivotal to Western social thought: that the stateis that entity which claims the monopoly of the legitimate use of force, which it may therefore elect to delegateas it sees fit. Politics is to be understood as any activity in which the state might engage in order to influencethe relative distribution of force. Politics thus comes to obtain two power-based concepts, to be understood asderiving of power.

Contents

1 Three grounds for legitimate rule2 The two forms of the state3 See also4 External links

Three grounds for legitimate ruleWeber defines politics as a form of "independent leadership activity". In this essay, the "state" serves as theplaceholder for the analysis of political organizations. The grounds for the legitimate rule of these politicalorganizations, according to Weber, fall into three major categories, or types:

TraditionalThe authority of "eternal past," based on habit. Weber defines custom as largely patriarchal, patrimonial,and traditional in scope.

Gift of grace/charismaThe authority of the "revelations, heroism, or other leadership qualities of an individual". Associatedwith "charisma" of prophets, demagogues, and popular vote.

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StatutesLegal rational authority, legality based on valid statutes. Based on rational competence and obedience ofthe "servant of the state".

The two forms of the stateWeber focuses his analysis on "political organizations", i.e. "states", and identifies two general forms of thestate, supposedly encompassing all state forms at the most general level:

1. The administrative staff beneath the ruler in status and power has its own means of administrationseparate from those of the ruler. This can include various forms of wealth and possessions, as well asmeans of production and control over labor. This administrative staff is essentially aristocratic,subdivided into distinct estates;

2. The administrative staff is completely or partially separated from the actual tools of administration, i.e.,how the proletariat is separated from the means of production. This staff become confidants withoutmeans in a patriarchal organization of deference and delegation.

Weber delineates two different ideas of the "state" based on the relationship between the administrators andtheir access to the actual means of administration. The second form of the state is considered to be modern; theadministrators do not own the money, buildings, and organizations they direct but are in the process ofbecoming expropriated expropriators by the actions of the monarch or the higher ruling class. With thisexpropriation completed, the leaders are then free to invest all resources in what way they choose, executivedecisions often remaining with the discretion of the highest representatives.

See also

Monopoly of the legitimate use of forceSociologyPoliticsVerstehenGandhi as a Political Strategist (chapter 11 critiques Weber's ethical typology)

External links

English translation of Politics as a Vocation (http://anthropos-lab.net/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Weber-Politics-as-a-Vocation.pdf)

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Politics_as_a_Vocation&oldid=587802969"Categories: Political science books Sociology books 1919 books Works by Max Weber

This page was last modified on 26 December 2013 at 21:11.

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