The Capitalist Future: A Consequence of Calvinist Annunciation

The Capitalist Future: A Consequence of Calvinist Annunciation

In his work, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber

predicts that the future will be a world of "mechanized perfection" devoid of

"religious and ethical meaning." In this world modern capitalism becomes a self

sustaining system no longer needing the Calvinist religious impetus that had

inspired the work ethic. Weber argues that the future will be a capitalistic

society, where the proletariat and the bourgeoisie alike, will not be driven by

religious motivation, but instead by a constant struggle to benefit from the

system. He reasons that this future of the capitalist society is a direct

consequence of the teachings of Calvinism. The Calvinist work ethic of 'living

to work' forms the core of modern capitalism. This ethic originated from the

Calvinist doctrine of predestination and the notion of a transcendental God.

Predestination decrees that God has already picked out who those "predestined

into everlasting life" (100) and those "foreordained to everlasting death"

(100). Calvinists also believe that God, a distant "grand conception" (164) who

is "beyond all human comprehension," (164) is unreachable. Both these beliefs

together eliminated any possibility of appeasing God through service or

sacrifice. The answer to the question whether believers were the chosen or the

damned could thus neither be influenced nor known. If, however, one turned his

work into a 'calling,' restricting any desire to wasteful pleasure, he could

experience a feeling of assurance that he is indeed a member of the Elect.

Calvinism preached this ascetic ethic of hard work and complete absence of

frivolous waste of money and time. As a result, the work ethic of the

population shifted from 'working to live' to 'living to work.' Traditional

capitalism which relied on the "greedy maximization of profit in a one-shot

enterprise," (14) became the rational modern capitalism, a continuous cycle

involving the constant "productive investment of capital." (172) The Calvinist

teachings demanded honest dealings in business, steady production and sales, and

continuous savings and reinvestment which no doubt led to phenomenal business

growth and success. Weber illustrates in the following quote: "When the

limitation of consumption is combined with the release of acquisitive activity,

the inevitable practical result is obvious: accumulation of capital through

ascetic compulsion to save." (172)

This "diligent and frugal" (175) attitude made people richer and

"material goods gained an increasing and finally an inexorable power over the

lives of men." (181) The dependence on external goods went from the "light cloak

which can be thrown aside at any moment" (181) to a necessity, or as Weber puts

it, an "iron cage." (181) The so called acetic lifestyle now led to an increased