Science as a Vocation
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''Science as a Vocation'' (German: ''Wissenschaft als Beruf'') is the text of a lecture given in 1917 at
Munich University The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...
by
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
sociologist and
political economist Political economy is the study of how economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and political systems (e.g. law, institutions, government) are linked. Widely studied phenomena within the discipline are systems such as labour mar ...
Max Weber Maximilian Karl Emil Weber (; ; 21 April 186414 June 1920) was a German sociologist, historian, jurist and political economist, who is regarded as among the most important theorists of the development of modern Western society. His ideas profo ...
. The original version was published in German, but at least two
translation Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...
s in
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
exist. ''Science as a Vocation'' is the first of the two "Vocation" lectures Weber delivered. The second lecture was "
Politics as a Vocation "Politics as a Vocation" (german: Politik als Beruf) is an essay by German economist and sociologist Max Weber (1864–1920). It originated in the second lecture of a series (the first was ''Science as a Vocation'') he gave in Munich to the "Free ...
" which was delivered in January 1919, also in Munich.


Summary

In ''Science as a Vocation'', Weber weighed the benefits and detriments of choosing a career as an academic at a university who studies science or humanities. Weber probes the question "what is the value of science?" and focuses on the nature of ethics underpinning the scientific career. Science, to Weber, gives methods of explanation and means of justifying a position, but it cannot explain why that position is worth holding in the first place; this is the task of
philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
. No science is free from suppositions, and the value of a science is lost when its suppositions are rejected. At one point in the lecture, Weber compares the nature of an artist's work to that of a scientist. He argues that the artist's work can reach fulfillment; the scientist's work, on the other hand, by its very nature, is designed to be surpassed. Weber reasons that science can never answer the fundamental questions of life, such as directing people on how to live their lives and what to value. Value, he contends, can only be derived from personal beliefs such as
religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
. He further argues for the separation of reason and faith, noting that each has its place in its respective field but, if crossed over, cannot work. Weber also separates fact from value in politics. He argues that a teacher should impart knowledge to students and teach them how to clarify issues logically – even political issues – but teachers should never use the classroom to indoctrinate or preach their personal political views. Weber also makes some practical comments about research and teaching. He notes that good scholars can be poor teachers, and that qualities that make one a good scholar, or a good thinker, are not necessarily the same qualities that make for good leaders or role models.


Dating

There has been some debate about when Weber delivered this lecture. Older sources often give the year as 1918. But based on a range of evidence scholars now think that Weber gave these lectures in 1917.Josephson-Storm, "A note on the dating of Max Weber’s Science as a Vocation” https://absolute-disruption.com/2017/10/24/a-note-on-the-dating-of-max-webers-science-as-a-vocation/


Translations

Weber, Max (1946). ''Science as Vocation'', in From Max Weber, tr. and ed. by H. H. Gerth, and C. Wright Mills. New York: Free press. Weber, Max (2004). ''Science as Vocation,'' in The Vocation Lectures, tr. by Rodney Livingstone, and Edited by David Owen and Tracy Strong (Illinois: Hackett Books).


References


External links


Original text ''Wissenschaft als Beruf'' at German Wikisource

Online ebook of ''Science as a Vocation''


online eBook Sociology essays Essays by Max Weber Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich 1917 speeches 1917 essays {{sociology-book-stub