Comparison Of Max Weber And Karl Marx

Max Weber and Karl Marx were similar on some level in their sociological ideas, however they had some key differences that are important to analyze. Max Weber was born in 1864, whereas Marx died in 1883. I think over the years there has been obvious speculation on whether Weber was contrasting his work to that of Marx. For me, I think that Weber formulated some of his ideas from those of Marx and was able to capture his own sense of society. The importance of examining these two sociological theorists is that their ideas affect the future of sociology. Their ideas helped to give future sociologists a perspective on society, and allow for people to examine and recognize how we all interact in this complex world.

Weber was different from Marx

For Marx, his belief was that "history was driven by class struggle" and that this was the problem in society (Farganis, 2014). Marx saw the means of production as an important factor for the problems in society. He believed that who owned the means of production caused great tension in society for those who worked for the means of production. Marx's focus was on the division of society into two classes, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. In a Marx perspective, the economy was a key element in the class struggle and how wealth was unequally distributed. I think even though Marx and Weber had differing views on society, they can be viewed similarly and related to one another. By this I mean, Weber's view of a bureaucratic society can be viewed as a counteract to Marx's examination of a capitalism society. I think that Weber viewed bureaucracy as a result of capitalism and changing times. Both Marx and Weber wanted for society to be more equal, but Marx was more optimistic than Weber was. Marx believed that a communist society would cause for a society to become entirely equal, he had hopes for people and the future of the economy. In opposition, Weber a pessimist, could not see a brighter future; he believed that a bureaucracy would not eliminate inequality but lead to future problems. Marx thought that society could eventually change, and Weber believed that due to history things were not going to change as

As stated by Ferrarotti, Marx and Weber both had a "predictive power" for society (Antonio, Glassman & Ferrarotti, 1987). Marx gave insight to the development of a capitalist society with his "concentration of power and the tendency toward a society divided between those who possess the means of production and those who are possessed…" (Antonio, Glassman & Ferrarotti,1987). Weber's analysis of …bureaucratization was prescient about certain, major modern social developments" (Antonio, Glassman & Ferrarotti, 1987). Both Weber's and Marx's views on society have shaped and continue to shape the way we are able to understand people and their interactions within society. I think that through their analyses of society, I can conclude that history plays major importance to how they cultivated many of their ideas that drove the passion for the famous works they have each