Werner Sombart (1863-1941) was one of the leading German economists and social scientists of the late 19thand early 20thcenturies. The son of an industrialist, his academic career was hampered by his early reputation as a Marxist economist. However, Sombart in his own work reversed Marx’s primacy of base over superstructure and emphasised the role of Geistor spirit. This focus on the psychological foundations of capitalism was to be a constant for Sombart throughout his career and became more pronounced after he became disillusioned with socialism.
Max Weber himself, co-editor with Sombart and Edgar Jaffé of the important journal Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik, wrote the following in his most famous work:
In general I do not need specially to point out, although the following studies go back in their most important points of view to much older work, how much they owe in their development to the mere existence of Sombart’s important works, with their pointed formulations and this even, perhaps especially, where they take a different road. Even those who feel themselves continually and decisively disagreeing with Sombart’s views, and who reject many of his theses, have the duty to do so only after a thorough study of his work. (Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, 198)
Sombart’s contribution to economic thought as one of the leading figures in the later German Historical School was extremely wide ranging. All of these contributions were brought together by Sombart in his magnum opus of some 3,000 pages (in 193 chapters): Der moderne Kapitalismus: Historisch-systematische Darstellung des gesamt-europäischen Wirtschaftslebens von seinen Anfängen bis zur Gegenwart, the first part of which – concerning pre-capitalist economic life – is translated into English for the first time in this volume.
Industry Reviews
He uses the conception of the spirit as the means to bring order and unity into the historical material. It is one of the most striking features of Sombart's work that he is able to interpret a whole epoch of history in such an illuminating and convincing way in terms of one great leading idea. It gives a unity to his presentation which marks a great advance over the entirely disconnected studies of historical facts presented by the historical school proper. It does not give the impression that he is “philosophizing” independently of the facts. On the contrary, he is able to achieve an amazing degree of concreteness in his picture. - Talcott Parsons
Werner Sombart puts his own stamp upon everything he writes. From its metaphysical foundations to its literary finish, his work is highly individualized. He has brought to light buried treasures of daily life in the Middle Ages. He has found new meanings in familiar materials. He has challenged conclusions which pass muster in our economic histories and concepts accepted in our theoretical treatises. In view of the seeming collapse of the German “historical school,” his method of work has an interest approaching the dramatic. Every serious student of economics should acquaint himself with Sombart's contribution. - Wesley C. Mitchell
