Marx + Weber

[JazzRemington]

Next semester I'm taking an independent research class as part of my graduate studies. I'm attempting to meld the works of Max Weber and Karl Marx (w/ a little Guy Debord thrown in for good measure) into a coherent paradigm for sociological research and I'm wondering if anyone is aware of works that attempt synthesis of Weber and Marx. I know a lot of the time it's only comparative (i.e. the compare and contrast Marx and Weber) but I've never seen an actual synthesis.

I'm aware that a some of Weber is contrary to Marx, but surely someone has attempted this before?

[The Douche]

Wasn't one of Weber's key ideas the ideal type, and wasn't his favorite ideal type the beuacracy? Granted I'm only in soc. 101 and haven't even finished it yet so I might just be confused. If so I don't see how you can create a valid synthesis. I mean, sure, you could force one, you could probably force a synthesis between the ideas of Marx and Hitler if you were willing to ignore some (a lot) of stuff.

I do like saying Weber though, cause our professor makes us say it in its swedish (or whatever) ponounciation, like "vay-ber".

[Hit The North]

Weber's notion of the 'ideal type' is as a methodological tool, analogous to the 'abstract' in Marx's methodological presentation. It isn't meant to have a normative meaning, that is, seen as desirable. In fact, Weber was fearful of the impact of the further extension of bureaucracy into more and more aspects of social life. He had a grim vision of the future: an atomized and therefore powerless and manipulable populace, trapped in an iron cage of instrumental rationality; persons reduced to the existence of individual cogs in a vast machine, dreaming only of being bigger cogs.

Re. the OP, I think there have been a number of attempts to synthesize Marxist and Weberian approaches to understanding social class, at least (see Erik Olin Wright: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Olin_Wright and http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~wright/). Meanwhile, Anthony Giddens is only one of several notable sociologists who have attempted to synthesise the insights of Marx and Weber (see his Capitalism and Modern Social Theory: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Capitalism-M...6172071&sr=1-7)

[Die Neue Zeit]

One particular Weberian concept that I strongly disagree with is the notion of "de-classing." This is evident in the standard Marxist definition of the "intelligentsia" as some abstract social stratum apart from class which, by the way, was first made by none other than Kautsky himself.

[Apeiron]

Weber's notion of the 'ideal type' is as a methodological tool, analogous to the 'abstract' in Marx's methodological presentation. It isn't meant to have a normative meaning, that is, seen as desirable. In fact, Weber was fearful of the impact of the further extension of bureaucracy into more and more aspects of social life. He had a grim vision of the future: an atomized and therefore powerless and manipulable populace, trapped in an iron cage of instrumental rationality; persons reduced to the existence of individual cogs in a vast machine, dreaming only of being bigger cogs.

Re. the OP, I think there have been a number of attempts to synthesize Marxist and Weberian approaches to understanding social class, at least (see Erik Olin Wright: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Olin_Wright and http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~wright/). Meanwhile, Anthony Giddens is only one of several notable sociologists who have attempted to synthesise the insights of Marx and Weber (see his Capitalism and Modern Social Theory: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Capitalism-M...6172071&sr=1-7)

Yes. Bourdieu was also highly influenced by both thinkers, though I can't think of any particular works of his that best demonstrate this..

I really like both thinkers. Obviously when it comes to their respective views on historical progression they're likely more or less irreconcilable, but I think there is a lot that can be synthesized between their two positions (perhaps taking a more normative reading of Weber's views on modernity and rationality, linking this with a Marxian conception of capitalist ideology.. some interesting things can be done here).

[Reclaimed Dasein]

I don't know of any explicit unions of Weber and Marx, but Weber's analysis of bureaucracies helps shed some light on the functioning of corporate capitalism.