“Disenchantment” denotes demystification and secularization of the world, which elevates science and technology to new level of importance. For Weber, the human mediation of salvation is magic (as for Calvin), since it implies that humans can have in fl uence on the will of God like ancient magicians in fl uenced the will of the gods by sacrifi cial practices. One of the central comparative-historical features of Max Weber’s sociology of religion is his theory of disenchantment, whereby magical forms … Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single chapter of a title in Oxford Handbooks Online for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice). The term was borrowed from Friedrich Schiller by Max Weber to describe the character of modernized, bureaucratic, secularized Western society. The concept was borrowed from Friedrich Schiller by Max Weber to describe the character of modernized, ... where for Weber, "the world … But disenchantment does not eo ipso have to signify a loss of meaning in life. The German sociologist Max Weber is the widely acknowledged promulgator of the disenchantment of the world thesis, which ‘in its broadest terms, maintains that wonders and marvels have been demystified by science, spirituality has been supplanted by secularism, spontaneity has been replaced by bureaucratization, and the PRINTED FROM OXFORD HANDBOOKS ONLINE (www.oxfordhandbooks.com). Disenchantment of the World. Introduction The standard interpretation of Weber’s theory of the disenchantment of the world distinguishes two interrelated shifts. Kenichi Mishima is professor emeritus for comparative studies of civilizations and for social philosophy at the University of Osaka. However,inarguing this Weber essentiallydrank the kool aid provided by anti-Enlightenmentand later Traditionalist thinkers from Edmund Burke (1729‒1797)toOswald Spengler (1880‒1936), who excoriated the enlightenment This article argues that the process described by Max Weber as the ‘disenchantment of the world’ is compatible with the continued vitality of ‘the occult’ in contemporary western culture. Abstract. Nature. The chapter concludes with a discussion of Weber’s conception of disenchantment in relation to the contrasting views of Benjamin and Robert Bellah. Access to the complete content on Oxford Handbooks Online requires a subscription or purchase. His research focuses on critical theory of society, theory of multiple modernities, German idealism, and critics of modernity. The Misleading Connection Between Disenchantment and Loss of Meaning, A Wrong Turn: Re-enchantment of the World Through Consumerism, Against the Disenchantment Formula: “Nothing Is Ever Lost”, “Multiple Modernities” and the Need to Revise Classical Concepts, The Narrative of Commemoration in a Disenchanted World, A Dialectic Path to Modernity: Reassessing Religious Potential Within the Bounds of Rationality. Parsons’s translation renders the key phrase entzauberung der welt as ‘the elimination of magic from the world’. Key-words: Max Weber. On the one hand it refers to an erosion of belief in supernatural powers, so that magic, myth and mystery Contemporary Capitalism and the Distribution of Power in Society, Weberian Social Theory: Rationalization in a Globalized World, Democracy, Partisanship, and Civil Society, The Weberian City, Civil Society, and Turkish Social Thought, The Modern State and Its Monopoly on Violence, The Relevance of Weber’s Conception and Typology of Herrschaft, The Supranational Dimension in Max Weber’s Vision of Politics, Plebiscitary Politics and the Threats to Legality: Some Classical Insights on a Current Phenomenon, Politics and Ethics, and the Ethic of Politics, Max Weber and the Late Modernization of Catholicism, The Literati and the Dao: Vernacular and Nation in China, Class, Caste, and Social Stratification in India: Weberian Legacy, The Study on Ancient Israel and Its Relevance for Contemporary Politics, The Rationalizations of Culture and Their Directions, Contemporary Life Conduct and Existential Cultures, From Occidental Rationalism to Multiple Modernities, Intellectuals, Scholars, and the Value of Science, The Iron Cage in the Information Age: Bureaucracy as Tangible Manifestation of a Deep Societal Phenomenon, Causation, Value Judgments, Verstehen. Weber used the German word Entzauberung, translated into English as “disenchantment” but which literally means “de-magic-ation.” More generally, the word connotes the breaking of a magic spell. It is important to note that in Max Weber’s sociological theory, the direct product of rationalization is the disenchantment of the world. If you have purchased a print title that contains an access token, please see the token for information about how to register your code. Home; About; Contact “The fate of our times is characterized by rationalization and intellectualization and, above all, by the disenchantment of the world.” ― Max Weber. Whereas in still-enchanted societies, according to Weber’s 1920 book Sociology of Religion (Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Religionssoziologie), “the world remains a great enchanted … He studied philosophy, German literature, and comparative studies of literature and civilization at the University of Tokyo. Max Weber. All Rights Reserved. Weber studied many topics over the course of his academic career, having been raised in a studious family. The “disenchantment of the world” is a famous formulation of Max Weber’s, one taken up in Walter Benjamin’s “Elective Affinities” essay. Or administrator to recommend adding this book to your organisation 's collection conventional readings of disenchantment showing... A role was also played by Nietzsche ’ s conception of disenchantment in the?! A better experience on our websites of civilizations and for social philosophy at the University of Tokyo and University... To provide you with a discussion of Weber ’ scontention that enlightenment rationality disenchanted the world two... You from other users and to provide you with a discussion of Weber ’ s preference principled... Cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a discussion of ’. On critical theory of the world London, 1930 ), pp out to. 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