Deck 42: Max Weber, From the Protestant Ethic and Spirit of Capitalism

Question 1

According to "The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism," persons who work hard and are successful should

A) avoid material luxury and hedonistic enjoyment of life.
B) strive to help others who are less successful.
C) retire early, leaving job opportunities to others.
D) pass their success on to their children in the form of wealth and social privilege.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

When Weber examines the modern world, he sees

A) enormous abundance and undreamed-of leisure that justify the hard work of his forefathers.
B) a spirit of cooperation and caring that extends wherever capitalism is adopted across the globe.
C) people turning away from hard work and faith in the capitalist system.
D) people trapped in a capitalist system but no longer holding the values or beliefs that helped create it.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Weber quotes extensively from which individual as an example of the "spirit of capitalism"?

A) John D. Rockefeller
B) Benjamin Franklin
C) Andrew Carnegie
D) Adam Smith

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Weber credits Martin Luther with developing the idea of a "calling," which claims that

A) we are all destined to enter heaven.
B) at a critical point in our life, we will "know God" as true.
C) God expects us to willingly engage in work as a sign or manifestation of our morality.
D) a select few people are designated to lead the rest of the people in righteousness.

Question 5

What name does Max Weber give to the religious view that emphasizes asceticism, duty in a calling, and one's worldly success as a sign of God's favor?

A) the Protestant ethic
B) substantive rationality
C) Methodism
D) the spirit of capitalism

Question 6

When Weber describes the "spirit of capitalism," he is emphasizing the

A) responsibilities owners and employers have to workers and employees.
B) connection between material abundance and belief in God.
C) obligation or desire to seek profits through economic activity.
D) the "invisible hand" that coordinates production and prices through supply