The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

In this chapter, Weber outlines what he argues constitutes “the spirit of capitalism”—a certain set of traits and attitudes toward labor and money that Weber believes are largely unique to a capitalist society (13). While Weber acknowledges that what he calls the spirit of capitalism “without a doubt existed before ‘capitalist development’” (19), he argues that it became especially widespread and societally acceptable only following capitalism’s growth and normalization.

To describe the spirit of capitalism, Weber quotes from a publication by Benjamin Franklin that he believes exhibits “the spirit of concern to us in near classical purity” (14). In a lengthy passage, Franklin focuses on advising individuals on how to properly care for their money and the best way they can go about increasing their wealth. He advises “that time is money” and that one should never be idle (14), instead using as much of one’s free time as possible to earn more money. He also advises that individuals should always use whatever money they have to make more money, for instance by investing it. Finally, Franklin instructs individuals to remain industrious and avoid spending their money on frivolous activities such as billiards or drinking at a tavern, in case they damage their reputation and thus other people’s willingness to loan credit to them.