Western rationalism-nature, of course, and genesis-was Max Weber's dominant historical interest. It was the grand theme of his two world historical studies, Economy and Society and The Economic Ethics of the World Religions. His studies of the relationships among economy, polity, law, and religion are lasting scholarly achievements. In this book Wolfgang Schluchter presents the most systematic analysis and elaboration ever attempted of Weber's sociology as a developmental history of the West.

Western rationalism-nature, of course, and genesis-was Max Weber's dominant historical interest. It was the grand theme of his two world historical studies, Economy and Society and The Economic Ethics of the World Religions. His studies of the relationships among economy, polity, law, and religion are lasting scholarly achievements. In this book Wolfgang Schluchter presents the most systematic analysis and elaboration ever attempted of Weber's sociology as a developmental history of the West.

Weber is increasingly being recognised as the theorist of modernity. Avoiding the mistakes of other classical thinkers, his sociological analysis has an increasing validity and relevance. Selected by one of the world's leading Weber scholars, this book introduces the work of this key thinker to a new generation of readers. Central themes highlighted in the collection are: * the developmental logic of world religions * the rise of modern capitalism * the multi-dimensionality of power in societies * the dilemmas of modernity * the theory of social action * ideal types and the objectivity of knowledge. The majority of the readings have been specially translated for this collection both to improve accuracy and to make Weber speak anew in the idiom of the twenty-first century. Each part opens with a short introduction explaining the sequence of readings, the flow of ideas and their intellectual context, and concludes with a guide to further reading.

"Publication of this material in English should be a major event in American Weber studies. Together with Economy and Society, Weber's comparative studies in the sociology of religion represent not only his own central contribution to theoretical sociology, but also one of the most ambitious and fruitful research programs in the history of modern social theory. Schluchter analyzes both of these projects and shows how they are related. There is nothing in the Anglo-American literature on Weber's sociology of religion that can match the rigor and thoroughness of these essays. They should raise the standards of scholarly debate concerning both the general theoretical significance and the details of Weber's sociology of religion."--Guy Oakes, Monmouth University "There is next to nothing in the field of Weber interpretation that reaches the superior grasp and breadth of knowledge displayed in these essays. Exciting and illuminating, they should be essential reading for anyone interested in comparative religion and domination."--Thomas Burger, Southern Illinois University

Huff provides a rare, full-scale study of the origins and development of Max Weber's methodology, which focuses on Weber's neglected early methodological essays that were not translated into English until the 1970s. He explores Weber's writings in light of developments in postempiricist philosophy of science, and shows that Weber was well aware of the epistemological foundations of the descriptive psychology school, whose intellectual heir was Husserl. This volume will help scholars and students understand in the broadest sense the issues central to the logic of social scientifi c explanation, and will appeal to philosophers, sociologists, political scientists, as well as scholars of Weber.

Understanding Weber provides an accessible and comprehensive explanation of the central issues of Weber's work. Using the most recent scholarship and editions of Weber's writings, Sam Whimster establishes the full range, depth and development of Max Weber's approach to the social and cultural sciences. This ground-breaking book: locates the central issues in Weber's writings and relates them to the golden era of social and cultural sciences argues that Weber remains the major exponent of the classical tradition still relevant today offers a new interpretation of the dynamic of Weber’s career as historian, social-economist, methodologist and sociologist. Weber's sociology still stands as a successful and valid underwriting of the substantive fields of power, law, rulership, culture, religion, civilizational configurations, and economic sociology. At a time of the turning away from grand theory to empirical policy studies, this book asserts the authority of Weber's conception and calls for a critical engagement with his legacy in order to understand the dynamics of a globalizing modernity. This is an indispensable guide to Weber's writings and will be an invaluable companion to The Essential Weber (2004). The book closely tracks the development of Weber’s thinking, an exploration that will make it an obligatory choice for undergraduate and postgraduate students as well as researchers in the fields of sociological theory, economic sociology and cultural studies.

Creative Social Research calls for a fundamental reconceptualization and transformation of contemporary research methods in the social sciences. Leading scholars from a variety of disciplines establish the ways in which the traditions of non-Western societies and contemporary global developments can be incorporated into current social science discourse, greatly enriching it beyond most of the existing paradigms and approaches.

The sociology of law has made impressive progress over the last decades. The present volume brings together scholars from Austria, Britain, Germany and Scandinavia to discuss major developments. The book starts with analyses of the sociology of law advanced by the most outstanding theorists in the field, Max Weber and Niklas Luhmann. Their legacy is assessed by Hubert Treiber, Frank Welz and Inger-Johanne Sand. Next, Hakan Hyden emphases the gain sociology of law could have from a stronger focus on norms. Armin Holand and Ole Hammerslev ask about the effects courts have. Klaus F. Rohl provides an international overview on "alternatives of law", one of the main topics of socio-legal studies since the 1960s. The final article by Stefan Machura in this volume addresses the media's impact on the public's perception of the legal system.