Lecture 15

Question 1

Politics as a vocation

Answer 1

• lecture in 1919

- Weber argues that politicians should have 3 key qualities

Question 2

What are the 3 key qualities Weber mentions that politicians need?

Answer 2

1. Passion
   - - Realistic
2. Sense of responsibility
   - - for the goals
3. judgement
   - - need a sense of detachment

Question 3

Politicians have tension between what two things?

Answer 3

• tension between rational and irrational

- ideal politicians blends both

Question 4

What are the 2 moral sins in politics?

Answer 4

1. lack or realism

2. Lack of responsibility

Question 5

What is ethics concerns?

Answer 5

• concerns rules of conduct to act properly

Question 6

What are the 2 ethical standards?

Answer 6

1. Ethic of conviction

2. Ethic of responsibility

Question 7

What is ethic of conviction ?

Answer 7

• ethic of absolute ends
• • person acts based on their principles
• ethic of intentionality
• • Principled behaviour: is that what matters is doing the right thing (intention > consequences)
• ethic of the gospal
• • acting based on principle, outcome is out of your hands (God)
• irrational orientation
• • consequences don’t matter, only belief matters
• rational aspect
• • deliberate intention
• consequence can violate the principle
• means and consequences might be undesireable

Question 8

What is ethic of responsibility?

Answer 8

• takes into consideration the likely outcome
• takes into consideration the irrationality
• good intent does not always mean good consequences
• means and consequences taken into consideration
• more cautions/reflexive type
• think of our own agency and our effects on the world

Question 9

What are ideal types ?

Answer 9

• Type of construct that sociologists develop when developping typologies
• produce typologies to help understand the world
• reality is more complex
• We all use both ethics, some more about the 1st and some more about the 2nd most usually use a blend of both
• politicians should avoid using both, and ultimately comprimising own soul
• • if care about principle, do not becoma a politician

Question 10

What is Weber’s view on life and irrationality ?

Answer 10

• Fundamental belief: Life and world are fundamentally irrational
• rejects the idea of progress in society

Question 11

What are the 4 basic ideas of irrationality?

Answer 11

1. emotional beings (affective)
   - - we have needs, passions, longings
   - - we are irrational beings
   - - best intentions can lead to horrible outcomes
2. Relationship to power
   - - we implicate relations of power
   - - generates irrationality
   - - things don’t always happenn in the best way
3. Chance and unforseeable consequences
   - - Fantasy of controlling and knowing everything (Science and modernity)
   - - We don’t because there’s always going to be forces out of our control
   - - reaity and social reality is more complex
   - - must be cautious and can’t make big claims (sociologists)
4. Ethical irrayionality of the world
   - - Axiological irrationality
   - - paradox of consequences

Question 12

What’s the axiological irrationality (antagonism of values)?

Answer 12

• innevetible conflict between different values in the world
• how do we decide whihc values to honor?
• ethical dilemmas
• • Tension between faith and science
• These tensions draw change
• constant tensions between competing values and the end
• power struggles

Question 13

What’s the paradox of the consepquences?

Answer 13

• based on distinction between consequences we can forsee and consequences that are unforseeable
• Good intentions can lead to bad outcomes
• Risk society (Ulrick Beck)
• • In earlier modernity, there was his fantasy of the equal future of work etc.
• • catastrophic potential consequences of industrial development (pollutants, toxins)
• • We live in a world of constant unpredictability
• The more we live in a globalized world, the more we have to predict that (unknown)

Question 14

What are the ethics of the politician ?

Answer 14

• They have a huge responsibility because they have monopoly over excersize of power
• important they follow the ethics of responsibility
• should not follow the ethic of conviction
• must be realistic (essential)
• must have these 3 qualities
  1. passion 2. sense of responsibility 3. judgement
• Thow shall resist evil with force (should follow this)
• reality is irrational
• Must act and do their best while acknowledging the world is not a perfect place
• they are aware of this and will have to comprimise to achieve their ends

Question 15

Classes, status groups and parties

Answer 15

• collection of texts called “economy and society” which were incomplete
• • sociologists found this an important contribution on power
• analysis power stratification
• complexify how people excersize power in society
• Adds 2 concepts to Marx

Question 16

How does Weber define power?

Answer 16

• has to do with the capacity to excersize it’s will even if there is resistance
• Power always has resistance
• more likely to get what you want if you have more power
• not only about money
• types of power can be blended

Question 17

How does Weber define Domination?

Answer 17

• No resistance

Question 18

What are the 3 orders?

Answer 18

1. Economic order (Class)
   - - the mode of distribution and consumption of economic goods and services
2. The social order (status groups)
   - - The mode of distribution of social status in a community
3. The political order (parties)
   - - the mode of distribution of political power in a community

Question 19

What are classes ?

Answer 19

• a group of people who share similar class situation
• more or less likely to be able to excersize power in the realm of distribution, depending on class
• more stratified than Marx
• Class stronger if job pays well/secure/full-time
• priviledge income class (doctors, lawyers, etc.)
• class is not a community (Form in the social order)
• Some circumstances, those who have similar claass situation might form community, parties, statu groups
• • slave and slave owners

Question 20

What are status groups?

Answer 20

• Capacity to excersize power has moe to do with convention
• Normally community (feeling of belonging)
• features include: lifestyle, formal education, prestige of birth or occupation
• can have negative, positive or neutral status
• how much respect you have
• homeless people don’t have high status, thus, they can’t excersize power

Question 21

What are parties?

Answer 21

Political affiliations

• formal & informal ways
• • informal ways = protests, club
• excersizing power through coming together (networking)
• chances of having your will abided by will be higher
• • MAAD, first nations
• must have a community (sense of belonging)