Max Weber
1864–1920 · German · Late 19th/Early 20th Century
Known for: Linked Protestantism to capitalism, identified the 'iron cage' of bureaucracy, and had history's most productive nervous breakdown
Brilliant, tormented, and extraordinarily wide-ranging. He suffered a severe breakdown in 1897 that left him unable to work for years.
His Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism is one of the most influential social science works ever. He analyzed bureaucracy, authority, and the 'disenchantment of the world.'
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