Approaches to Area Studies 1: A Preliminary Step for a Systematic Research I25022 Yoo Kyeong Wan

 “Science as a Vocation” is the text of a lecture given in 1918 at Munich University by Max Weber. My Article is…

- In Science as a Vocation, Weber discusses the benefits and detriments of choosing a graduate career in the sciences. He probes the question "what is the value of science", noting that ethics themselves are not subject to scientific examination. 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. No science is free from suppositions, and the value of a science is lost when its suppositions are rejected. Science as a Vocation

-Weber's major works dealt with the rationalization and disenchantmentrationalizationdisenchantment associated with the rise of capitalismcapitalism and modernity.modernity -He influenced social theory,social theory social researchsocial research, and the discipline of sociology itself. Max Weber

 graduate student who want to dedicate himself professionally to science in university life, we need to understand the peculiarity of German conditions by comparison the United States. Science as a Vocation

 In Germany, the career of the young man who is dedicated to science normally begins with the position of Privatdozent.  Privatdozent - Private lecturer who pursues an academic career and holds all formal qualifications to become a university professor, not connected to any salaried position. “Science as a Vocation”

 In the US the academic career usually begins as an 'assistant.’  In the US, where the bureaucratic system exists, the young academic man is paid from the very beginning. To be sure, his salary is modest; usually it is hardly as much as the wages of a semi-skilled laborer. Yet he begins with a seemingly secure position, for he draws a fixed salary. Science as a Vocation

 A further difference between Germany and the United States is that in Germany the Privatdozent generally teaches fewer courses than he wishes.  As a rule, the full professor gives the 'big' courses and the docent confines himself to secondary ones.  In America, during the early years of his career the assistant is absolutely overburdened just because he is paid. Science as a Vocation

 Democracy should be used only where it is in place. Scientific training, as we are held to practice it in accordance with the tradition of German universities, is the affair of an intellectual aristocracy, and we should not hide this from ourselves. To be sure, it is true that to present scientific problems in such a manner that an untutored but receptive mind can understand them and--what for us is alone decisive--can come to think about them independently is perhaps the most difficult pedagogical task of all. But whether this task is or is not realized is not decided by enrollment figures. And--to return to our theme--this very art is a personal gift and by no means coincides with the scientific qualifications of the scholar. Science as a Vocation

 It is a fact that no amount of such enthusiasm, however sincere and profound it may be, can compel a problem to yield scientific results.  enthusiasm is a prerequisite of the 'inspiration' which is decisive. Science as a Vocation

 In Science as a Vocation Weber discusses the benefits and detriments of choosing a graduate career in the sciences. He probes the question "what is the value of science", noting that ethics themselves are not subject to scientific examination. 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. No science is free from suppositions, and the value of a science is lost when its suppositions are rejected. Science as a Vocation

 He 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. He further argues for the separation of reason and faith, noting that each has its place in respective field but if crossed over cannot work. Science as a Vocation

 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. 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 Conclusion