Eastern Societies in Marx and Weber

The history of sociology was built on the axis of the opposition created between Marx and Weber. Positioning Weber against Marx and presenting him as an answer to Marxism, starting from his early life, shaped sociological theory.

The main aim of Marx and Weber, who are interested in the issues of the modern age, is to analyze the structure and functioning of modern society around the birth and development of capitalism. Thus, they seek to define and position modern society historically. Within the framework of this purpose, the analysis of Eastern societies has an important position in both of them.
Marx and Weber, who differ from each other in terms of their approaches to political issues in the West, come closer to each other when it comes to explaining the modern form of society vis-à-vis the East.

Marx's ideas were quite widespread in the environment and intellectual environment in which Weber grew up. In this context, his relationship with Marx developed in two opposite ways. In the first one, Weber, as a class-conscious member of the German bourgeoisie, has a negative approach to Marx around the problematic of the future of the German state, partly based on the situation of contemporary Marxism. Weber's second point of contact is his relations with Marx as a scientist. Aware of the breadth of the framework he developed and its importance for the Western cultural world, Weber attaches importance to Marx.

In this sense, the first thing to consider is the motivations behind which Marx and Weber analyzed Eastern societies. The basic issues of their studies of Eastern societies are the same. This fundamental issue revolves around why the modern form of society emerged only in the West. In this context, while Marx makes statements with reference to a special form of land order and capital accumulation in England, Weber points out the revolutions in the Western mentality and the parallel and complementary rationalizations in all areas of life. When it comes to Eastern societies, this question becomes why the modern form of society did not emerge in the East.

Lütfi Sunar, who deals with these issues in the book you have in hand, examines Marx and Weber's views on Eastern societies, focusing on rich sources and the reflections of this discussion.


Thin Cover:

Number of Pages: 288

Year of Printing: 2012


eBook:

Number of Pages: 312

Year of Printing: 2012


Language: Turkish
Publisher: Details Publications

First Printing Year: 2012

Number of Pages: 288

Language Turkish