Marx Vs Weber

Marx and Weber on Social Inequality

Group One

Class

Social Inequality

Social Classes

"Any group of people who have a similar chance for a supply of goods, external living conditions, and personal life experiences....determined by the power to dispose of goods and skills for the sake income in a given economic order"

Society is characterized by class struggle

"Classes, Status Groups and Parties" are phenomena of the distribution of power within a community"

SOC3106

Two distinct social classes

Class situations

Distribution of Material Property

Caused by the Mode of production

Class is based solely on economic order

Mode of Production

Productive Forces

Social and Technical Relations

Weber

Status Groups

If Marx's system of classes were applied to contemporary society, where would you fit?

Similarities/Differences

Marx

Weber

How you relate to each other and are bound by material things

Can you provide a modern example of Weber's theory of Bureaucracy?

The outcome of their research was substantially different, with Weber being an extension of Marx's work

Both addressed the same concern of inequality, with both using an economic approach

Marx

Born 1864

An Individual's "Status Situation" is determined by a specific positive or negative social estimation of honor.

Marx observed at a Macro Level, looking at institutions as a whole

Weber observed at a micro level, looking at smaller groups and individuals

How has your 'status' in society provided you with oppurtunities or hindered them?

Only focused on ownership of capital

Added social power and influence

"Father of Modern Sociology"

Exploiting and Exploited

Adds Subjectivity

Born 1818

Class does not determine Status

THE MENTAL BREAKDOWN

Conflict Theorist

Individual's Status is determined by society

Saw the decline of Liberalism, Rise of state power

Understanding means attached to actions

Focused on Economics

All societies are classes based in some way shape or form

Political life as a struggle of conflicting ideas between individuals and groups

Exploitation

WEBER!

Historical Approach

Who controls the means of production?

Dependent but conflictual relationship

Parties

Creates opposing interests

"Groups of people who are oriented to the acquisition of social power."

Wage labor exploitation

Bibliography

False Consciousness

Parties might represent the interests of class situations and/or status situations."

H. Gerth and C. Wright Mills (eds), From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology.

R. Bendix, Max Weber: An Intellectual Portrait.

Wiley, N. (1987). THE MARX-WEBER DEBATE Sage Publications. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/60026894?accountid=14701

Only Possible in communities that are "Societalized". (have a rational order and people to enforce it)

Bureaucracy

Historical Materialist

Perspective

Bendix, Reinhard (1974). INEQUALITY AND SOCIAL STRUCTURE: A COMPARISON OF MARX AND WEBER. American Sociological Reveiw. Retrived from http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/2094228.pdf?acceptTC=true

Formal Hierarchy

Management by universal rules

Everything is material

Specialization

Human labor as a commodity

Employment based on Qualifications

Solution is Communism

Impersonal

Worker Revolution

Problems with bureaucracy