Max Weber Ideologies: Law and State, Essay Example

Many scholars have conceptualized various concepts like the state, law, power, authority, justice among other concepts differently.  Well known scholars like Aristotle, Plato, Socrates, Nicolle Machiavelli just to mention but few have their own theories that explain these concepts. This is no different with Max Weber. West Phalia treaty of 1648 states that, state is any entity that entails citizens, well defined boundary, standing army, international recognition and enjoys international sovereignty. Having said that, there is great need to deeply evaluate the most sophisticate theories of legal change when dealing with societal development, Evolutionary model oversimplified western legal history. It fails to address impact of economic inequalities and conflicts that arises from it. It also fails to address the role of politics in state formation. It is these weaknesses that lead Max Weber to come up with his own theory; Marxian Theory. Max Weber argues that the role of economic interest in formation of law is determinate. Max Weber dwells mainly on political sociologist and comparative sociologist of law. He was more concern about legal institutions. Through his scholarly writings, he found more interest on rationalization of social life in modern societies. To him rationality and rationalization was the end.

Rationality

To bring out the concept rationality clearly, Weber wrote about education, rise of profession, rise of modern science and development of capitalism. He sees capitalism as rational in the sense that it makes people think in relatively long-range. Mostly about consequences of their actions and assumes that other people are doing the same things.

Law

Man without law is a beast. As long as he can get away without punishment, he will keep on injuring others. In Max sociological of law, law is treated as an expression of political domination. Domination suggests the rule of tyrants’. It is the authoritarian power of command where leaders secure obedience from their subjects. This concept drives Weber to address power and authority.

Power and Authority

Max Weber defined power as probability that one actor, within the social relationship and be in a position to carry out his own will despite resistance, regardless of the basis on which this probability rests. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.  Power should be relational. It should exist in the context of a relationship between people and leaders. Power should also be probabilistic. Power is control, but control is never absolute.

Power may be coercive such that those in power may tend to abuse it. When a leader uses power to threaten to take the life of a subject as a condition of obedience, or operates in unjust manner, that is coercive. To curb this, Weber brings in a special kind of power, authority.

Authority

Weber defined authority as situation in which leader’s command is taken by subjects and act on as if the subject valued the action for its own sake. This kind of power relatively makes people want to obey an order.

Types of political domination

Weber came up with three types of political domination in order to support his views of power and authority. The first type of political domination is traditional authority, legitimacy is claimed for. It rest on believed of virtue sanctity of age-old rules and power. The ultimate justification is based on status quo “because it has always been that way.”  The second type of domination is what Weber termed it as legal-rational authority. This is the modern form of domination. It rests on believe that legality of enacted rules and the right of those elevated to authority under such rules issue commands.

The administrative form of legal-rational domination is bureaucracy. Bureaucracy offers solution to the problem of selecting people to do work of administration. It is the work of education system to select the best qualified who can fit public office. Bureaucrats are not loyal to their leaders but to rules. This curbs injustices in the society.

The third type of domination is what Weber called charismatic authority. This rest on devotion to the exceptional sanctity, heroism and normative patterns, leaders demonstrate their gift and talents to lead. They lead exemplary lives and win battles.

Rational and irrational law

For law to be effective, it should be separated from other aspects of social life. Procedures must be ritualized and elaborate. For rules to be considered legal, it should be systematically organized around abstract principles.

Capitalism and rational law

It is Weber who recognized that there is a powerful affinity between capitalism and modern laws. To ensure that market economy develops on a large scale, individuals must work for wages, and contracts must be enforceable with smooth and standard mechanism for exchange of money, goods and services across long distance and over an extended period of time. With this, capitalism pushes for legal formalism because it offers relatively maximum freedom. Capitalism and formal legality share common set of values.

Conclusion

It will not be an exaggeration to suggest that the current world is utilizing Max Ideologies. Personality, I rate Max Weber one in a million. I believe he lived in his own world. Weber made two major accomplishments in his work, sociology of law. He constructs a pure model of style of law which he called formal rationality using his methodological tool of ideal type. His sociological terms are more understandable and sharper. Secondly, he offered an account of western legal development that views closely methodology. He is the cause for emergence of formal legality that confluence bureaucratic state building, secularization and legal professionalization.

Reference

Charles. T, (2005), Modernity and Politics in the Work of Max Weber (2^nd Ed.), Chicago, Routledge Books Limited

Joseph. P. M (2005), Max Weber and German Politics: A Study in Political Sociology, (5^th Ed.), Germany, Faber & Faber publishers

Wilson. H .T (2004), The Vocation of Reason: Studies in Critical Theory and Social Science in the Age of Max Weber, (2^nd Ed.), New York, Brill Educational Limited.