In:
Annales. Histoire, Sciences Sociales, Cambridge University Press (CUP), Vol. 47, No. 3 ( 1992-06), p. 751-765
Abstract:
Among the questions which, in the works of F. Tönnies, E. Durkheim, G. Simmel and Max Weber, have constituted the foundation of the social sciences since the latter quarter of the nineteenth century, there are two which have played a primordial role in classical sociological thought without receiving sufficient recognition. These are (1) the problem of the Middle Ages and the « modernity » of the contemporary period, and (2) the role played by groups in society, seen within the context of this same opposition between the two periods. The present article describes the positions of the four «classical masters» of sociology and emphasizes the current value of Max Weber's research on medieval « sworn associations » (guilds and the communes) in relation to the history of private law and « arbitrary law » (« Willkür ») and of the brotherhood contract (« Verbrüderung »). Weber offers a theory of the process of modernization and develops a broad historical perspective which links Antiquity, the Middle Ages, the modem and contemporary periods in the Occident, while it also integrates other civilizations into a comparative perspective.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
0395-2649
,
1953-8146
DOI:
10.3406/ahess.1992.279071
Language:
English
Publisher:
Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Publication Date:
1992
detail.hit.zdb_id:
298-7
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2209294-8
SSG:
8,2
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