Max Weber Classic Monographs Volume VII Weber and Islam

Bryan S. Turner has produced a useful and stimulating study. Recognizing the pauc-
ity of sociological studies of Islam, he set about to produce an introductory general work
aimed at undergraduates. To organize the vast material he proposed to borrow from
Max Weber's comparative surveys of Oriental and Occidental cultures certain funda-
mental concepts, e.g., "social action, cultural ethics, economic development, and the
problem of legitimation." The product was to bear the title Islam and Weber. But as
Turner immersed himself in Weber's sociology, he increasingly came to regard it as
"elusive, complex, and polychrome" (1). Accordingly, he found it necessary also to pro-
duce an elucidation and exegesis of Weber's positions in sociology, social philosophy and
methodology so that he might more fruitfully employ Weberian ideas in the study of the
Islamic culture complex. This new focus is reflected in the changed title of the work,
i.e., Weber and Islam.