Lehrman American Studies Center at ISI

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BOOK

The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

Author:Max Weber
Translator:Talcott Parsons
ISBN: 0-415-25406-X
Publication Info: London: Routledge, 1992.
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This well-known text argues that the Protestant ethic peculiarly enabled and encouraged the development of Western capitalism.

Lee Trepanier on Dec 16, 2008

This book is best suited for an advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate course in political science, history, philosophy, and religion. For my political theory courses, I usually have students read Marx first before they read Weber and then ask them to argue which thinker is more accurate in describing the evolution and nature of capitalism. It also may be helpful to have students read some Calvin and Luther. One could ask whether Weber's argument really does justice to Calvin; and whether Luther's (or even Catholic) thought should be downplayed in the development of capitalism.