Why did the West get rich
KOPSTEIN
Why did the why west get rich?
They stole it: Imperialism
Problem: Why didn’t they steal it from us first. Why didn’t they come and steal from the Europeans first?
What are the origins of technological superiority
Weather: warming up of Europe after the 15th Century. But then why rent tropical countries that developed?
Max Weber
What was it about the Northwestern part of Europe that made it unique?
Protestantism and capitalism
Weber wasn't the first to do this: in facet
Protestant ethic
Published as 2 long articles 1904 and 1905
Opens with a statistical fact
Not merely a contemporary fact but an historical fact: tracing the association back, it can be shown that some of the early centers of capitalists development in the early part of the 16th century were strongly protestant
Ready explanation? Break with economic traditionalism produced a sloughing off of tradition and of religious institutions
But this interpretation doesn’t stand up to scrutiny
Reformation not an escape from controls of the Church
It involved a much higher degree of regulation of behavior than that which was determined by Catholicism
Protestantism adopts a stringent attitude towards relaxation and enjoyment- especially pronounced in Calvinism
Therefore: must look at the specific character of Protestant beliefs if we are to account for connection between Protestantism an economic rationality
Weber not the first to see the correlation between the capitalism and Protestantism. But usual interpretation was Marxist: Protestantism is ideological reflection of economic changes in early capitalism
Weber's originality is in arguing that usually people caught up with economic activity are indifferent or hostile to religion( their actions are directed to material world; religion is directed to immaterial world)
But Protestantism did not relax control of church over day to day activities but intensified it and demanded MORE rigorous discipline than Catholicism.
Why did the why west get rich?
They stole it: Imperialism
Problem: Why didn’t they steal it from us first. Why didn’t they come and steal from the Europeans first?
What are the origins of technological superiority
Weather: warming up of Europe after the 15th Century. But then why rent tropical countries that developed?
Max Weber
What was it about the Northwestern part of Europe that made it unique?
Protestantism and capitalism
Weber wasn't the first to do this: in facet
Protestant ethic
Published as 2 long articles 1904 and 1905
Opens with a statistical fact
Not merely a contemporary fact but an historical fact: tracing the association back, it can be shown that some of the early centers of capitalists development in the early part of the 16th century were strongly protestant
Ready explanation? Break with economic traditionalism produced a sloughing off of tradition and of religious institutions
But this interpretation doesn’t stand up to scrutiny
Reformation not an escape from controls of the Church
It involved a much higher degree of regulation of behavior than that which was determined by Catholicism
Protestantism adopts a stringent attitude towards relaxation and enjoyment- especially pronounced in Calvinism
Therefore: must look at the specific character of Protestant beliefs if we are to account for connection between Protestantism an economic rationality
Weber not the first to see the correlation between the capitalism and Protestantism. But usual interpretation was Marxist: Protestantism is ideological reflection of economic changes in early capitalism
Weber's originality is in arguing that usually people caught up with economic activity are indifferent or hostile to religion( their actions are directed to material world; religion is directed to immaterial world)
But Protestantism did not relax control of church over day to day activities but intensified it and demanded MORE rigorous discipline than Catholicism.