Professional Documents
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09 - WEBER Economy and Society
09 - WEBER Economy and Society
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CHAPTER
I I I
THE TYPES OF LEGI TI MATE
DOMI NATI ON
1
The Basis oLegitimacy
I . Domination and Legitimac
^
Dominaton was defne abve echo 1: 16) a the prbbility that
crtin spi6c commands (or-all cmmands) will bobye by a gven
group of prons. It thus do n include every m d m
g
"pe" or "infuence" or o prsons. Dominato ("autorty")l
in this snse may b ba on m:t divere mv dcc:
the way from. simple habitaton t the mot purey rt c
ton o advantage. Hence evey guine form of dominaton implie
a minimum of voluntary complianc. that is, an intet {b on
utr motves or genuine ac c) in obiec.
Mwc of dominapO mus o eonon m m
do w&ways have eonomic objve. Howeve, nl te m
ovr a csideble numht m@ rUire a stf (e. c. b,),
that is, a 'e gouP which c nol y bme the
, geral plicy a we a the sc cmmands. The meb of the
aministatve stf may bbobienc w teir sp(o s
prio") by custo, by , by a py mtrial cplex of
[:U2]
i
J
\
The Ba of Legitimy
\
interet, o;'by ideal (wetatoal) motives. Te quality of these mo
tve largely detennine the typ of domination. Purely material interet
and calcu1atoris of advantages as the basis of solidarity ben the chief
and his administratve staf reult, in this as in other connexons, in a
ratvely unstable situation. Nonnally other element, aetuaJ and
idel, supplement such interet. In certain exceponal case the former
alone may b desive. In everyday life thee relatonships, like others,
a govere by custm and material calculation of advantge. But cus
tom, prsonal avtg, purly afetual or idel motve of solidarity,
do not fonn a sufcienty reliable basis for a given dominaton. In addi
ton there is normally a further element, the blief in lgtm.
Expience shows that in no instance do dominaton voluntarily
limit itelf to the appl to material or afe or iel motve as a basis
for it contnuance. In additon every such system attempt to etablish
mto cultivate the blief in it legitmacy. But according to the kind of
legitmacy which is claimed, the typ of obience, the kind of adminis
trativ staf develop t guarantee it, and the moe of exerising author
ity,' wilI all difr fundamentlly. Equally fundamental is the variaton in
efet. Hence, it is usful t clasif the gof dominaton acing
t the kind of claim to legitmacy typcally made by ec. In doing this,
it is bt to start fm moem and therfore more familiar exmple.
I. The choice o this rther than w-other basis m ca fcto
m oly b justife by it reult. The fact that = oher typical
criteria o vrto are theeby negle for the U bing and c
only b intouce at a lat stage is no a deisiv di ty. The I-ge
m o a Q o cot has fr mor than a y "ie" sigi
m, only bm it h w definit relatos t emo
[ Ch. III
freely resigned, and even the status of "subject" can often ,be freely
entered into and (in certain circumstances) freely repudiated. Only in
the limiting case of the slave is formal subjection to authority absolutely
involuntary.
On the other hand, we shall not speak of formal domination if a
monopolistic position permits < person to exert economic power, that is,
to dictate the terms of exchange to contractual partners. Taken by itself,
this dos not constitute authority any more than any other kind of in
fuence which is derived from some kind uf superiority. as hy virtue of
erotic attractiveness, skill in sport oc m discuSSion. Even if a big bank i!
in a position to force other banks into a cartel arrangement, this will not
alone be sufcient to justify calling it an authority. But i f there is a1
immediate relation of command and obedience such that the manage
ment of the frst bank can give orders to the others with the clai'm that
they shall, and the probability that they will, be obeyed regardless of
particular content, and if their carrying out is supervised, it ,is, another
matter. Naturally, here as eve!'here the transitions are, gradual; there
are all sorts of intermediate steps between mere indebtedn and debt
slavery. Even the position of a "salon" can come very close to the border
line o authoritarian domination and yet not necessarily cGllstittlte "au
thority." Sharp diferentiation in concrete fact is often ilfpossible, but
this makes clarity in the analytical distinctions all the more important.
3- Naturally, the legitimacy of a system of dmination may be treated
soiologically only as the probability that to a relevant degree the appro
priate attitudes will exist, and the corresponding practical conduct ensue.
It is by no means true that every case of submissiveness to persons in
p
ositions mpower is pri
,
arily (
r even at all
.
)
ri
nted to
"
this helief.
oyalty may b hyporItIcally simulated by mdlvlduals o-by whole
groups on purely opportunistic grounds, or carried out in practice for
reasons o material selfinterest. Or pople may submit from individual
weakness and helplessnes becaus there is no acceptable alternative.
But these considerations are not decisive for the classifcation of typs of
domination. What is important is the fact that in a given ; the panic
ular claim to legitimacy is to a Signifcant degree and according to its
type treated as "valid"; that this fact confrms the position of the prsons
claiming authority and that it helps to determine the choice of means of
its exercise.
Furthermore, a system of domination may-as often ocurs in practice
-b so completely protected, on the one hand by the obvious commu
nity of interests between the chief and his administrative staf (boy
guards. Pretorians, "red" or "white" guards) as opposed to the subjects, on
the other hand by the helplessness of the latter, that it can aford to drop
even the pretense o a claim to legitimacy. But even then the moe of
legitimation of the relation btween chief and his sf may vary widely '
accoding to the typ of bass o the relation o the authority between
mm, and, as will b sow. this variation is highly signifcant for the
Itructufe o domination.
i | The Basis of Legitimacy 2
,
5
4. "Obedience" will be taken to mean that the action of the person
obeying fol'lows in essentials such a course that the content of the com
mand may be taken to have become the basis of action for its own sake.
Furthermore, the fact thit it is so taken is referable only to the formal
obligation, without regard to the actor's own attitude to the value or lack
of value of the content of the ('ommand as such.
5. Subjectively. the cau.sal seuence may vary, especially as between
"intuition" and "sympathetic agreement." This distinction is not, how
evcr, signifcant for the present classifcation of types of authority.
6. The scope of determination of social relationships and cuhurai
phenomena bv virtue of domination is considerably broader than appears
at first Sight. For instance, the authority exercised in the schools has much
to do with the determination of the forms of speech and of written lan
guage which (\1" regarded as orthodox. Diale.:ts used as the "chancellery
langu;gc" of <lutocephalom political units, hence of their rulers, have often
hecoml' orthodox forms of speech and writing and have even led to the
formdtion of separate "na<iun" (for instance, the separation of Hol
land from Germany), The lUll b:' parents and the school, hovever,
extends far beyond the determination of such cultural patterns, which
are perhaps only apparently formal, to the formation of the young, and
hence of human beings generally.
7. The fact that the chief and his administratiYc staf often appear
formally as servants or agents of those they rule, naturally dos nothing
whate\er to dispro\'e the quality of dom:nance. There will be ocasion
later to speak of the substanti\'e features of so-called "democracy." But a
certain minimum of assured rower to issue commands, thm of domina
tion, must b provided for in nearly every conceivable case,
2. The Three Pure Types of Authority
There are three pure types of legitimate domination. The validity
of the claims to legitimacy may be based on:
I. Rational groundsresting on a belief in the legality of enacted
'ules and the right of those elevated to authority under such rules to issue
commands (legal authority).
2. Traditional grounds-resting on an established belief in the sanc
tity of immemorial traditions and the legiti macy of those exercising
authority under them (traditional authority); or fnally,
j. Charismatic grounds-resting on devotion to the exceptional
sanctity, heroism or exemplary character of an individual person, and of
the normative patterns or order revealed or ordained by him (charismatic
authority) .
In the case of legal authority, obedience is owed to the legally estab
lished impersonal order. It extends to the persons exercising the authority
TIlE TYPES OF LECmMATE DMINATION [ Ch. I|i
o Omcc uOct t by VIttuc O thc Otma c_aty O thct cOmmands d
Ony wthn thc scOQ O authOttyO thc Omcc n thc co ttadtOna
authOt\ty, Obcdcncc \sOwcd tO thcpeson O thc chc whoocugm thc
ttadtOnay sanctOncd gOstOn O authOtty and whO s Wthn U
sghctc bunu by ttadtOn. ut hc thc ob_auOn o Occ s a
mattct O gctsOna oyaty wthn thc awa O accustOmo Ob_auOns. n
thccasc OchatsmatcauthOtty, tsthcchatsmaucay guabO lee
as such whO s Obcycu by vttuc O pronl ttust n hs tcVcauOn, hs
hctOsmOthscXcmgaty guatcs so atas thcy a Wthn thc o
thcnuvduasbc n hschatsma.
1, hc uuncss othcabovc cassbcaton can on!y b ud_c by
b tmuu n _tomotn_ systcmatc anayss. hc conccgt M "chatsma
("the _t o go", s mkcn tom thc voabu!aty o mty Lhtstanty.
otthc Lhtstan hctotacy udo bohm, n hs Krcherecht,was thc
htst to caty thcsubtancc o thc conccgt, ethouh hc dd not usc
thc sam terminolog, Lthms [ot nstancc, 1o! n h un
Bussgealt) havc cathc certin mgtant cOngumcm o t. !t s
thusnothn_ncw.
2. hc act that nonc o thcsc thtw d thc cucdauo O
Whch w! ocugy Ihc oown_ u ay to b ound n hs
totca caw n "gutc onn, \s natuynoa va!d ojccon t atmt-
n_ thct conccgtua otmuadon m thc shatgt g bc otm. U ths
tmt thcgtcntcisno dhctcntfrom manyohms. on (.
n E.J thc uansonaton O gutc chatsma b thc go M tounza-
uon w b ww and thctcby thc cvancc w thc cOn to thc
undctsNndn_ o cmgtca systcms o authotty co8dmaby ncmd.
ut e s t may m sad Ocvcty hstotca ghmOmmo oauthotty
that t s not !kcy to b as an qb k. nays n vns M soo
@ca g has, atct a, ascomg wth uy wgm hstotca
nvm_auon, ccttan advanta_m whch shoud mm mm. hat
u, tnthcgattcuat ca maoRMauthmty dmnc
what conons to Ot aggtoxlmam such ga cw, "hmotaQ
chatsma," "thc chatsma o Omcc, "ptcy," 'but, thc au-
thmty ostatus @g and n dmn_ s k wow wh tvy
w
amb_uous conccgu. ut thc dm that thc whoc M coctM mca
tcatybcxhausto n thcconOw abt to mdcVcg
s as aththcauthotstho_huasanythm_codb.
ii } Legal Authoit With a Bureaucratic Staf
2 I
11
Le
g
al Authorit
y
With a Bureaucratic
Administrative Staf
Noe: Th speifcally mo typ o administration has intetionally
b n taken as a point o deprture i order to make it posible latr to
contrast the others with it.
3. Legal Authority: The Pure Type
Lal authority rests on the acceptance of the validity of the fonow
ing mutually inter-dependen ies.
I. That any givn legal nom may b establishe by agremet or by
impsiton, o grounds of expdiency or value-rationality or bh, with
a caim to obience at least o the part of the membrs of the organi
zaton. This is, however, ul y extended to include all psons within
Uspher of pwer in queton-which in the case of territorial bie
is the territorial area-who stnd in certain soial relatonships or carry
out forms of soial action which in the oe govering the orgniztion
hav bdm to b relevant.
2. That every by of law cnsist etally in a consistent system
of abstract rule which hav normally ben intentonally etablishe.
Furthermore, administaton of law is held to consist in d applicaton
of thee rule t particular cs; the administative pres in the ratonal
pursuit of the interet which a spfe in the order governg the
.organizton within the limit laid down by legal prpt following
.
pincple which are capable o gene fonnuIaton a appr
i
in te ore govring the grp, or at lest not dispprov in it.
.
_. Tat thus the ti gin autority, the "supior," b
subj t an ipr mb orientng hi ao t it m his
own ditons and o .(his-i te not only for psons er
<g legal autority who a in the u s , but,
instnc, fr the ele prt a su`
g. t the pn wh o authority do s, a it is ul y
str, only in his cty . a " o t oa ton what
mob is only "the law." [Hmy m dconneon b t m
2 I 8 THE TYPES OF LECITIMATE DMINATION [ Ch. l|l
of an association, of a community, of a church, or a citizen of a state.)
. In conformity' with point j, it is held that the members of the
organization, insofar as they obey a person in authority. do not owe this
obedience to him as an individual, but to the impersonal order. Hence, it
follows that there is an obligation to obedience only within the sphere
of the rationally delimited jurisdiction which, in term! of the order, has
been given to him.
The fonowing may thus be said to b the fundamental categories of
rational legal authority:
(: ) A continuous rule-J.-md ,:ondu('t of ofcial business.
;] A specifed sphere of C0mpetence (jurisdiction). This involves:
(a) A sphere of obligations to perform functions which has been marked
of as part of a systematic division of labor. (b) The provision of the
incumbent with the necessary power. (c) That the necessary means of
compulsion are clearly defned and their use is subject to defnite condi
tions. A unit exerCising authority which is organized in this way will be
calbd an "administrative organ" or "agency" (Behade).
There are administrative organs m this snse in large-scale private
enterprises, in partie and annies, as well as in the state and the church.
P electe president, a cabinet of ministers, o a boy of elected "Peo
ple's Representatives" also in this sense constitute administrative organs.
This is not, however, the place to disuss these concepu Not every
administratve organ is provided with compulsory powers. But this dis
tinction is not important for present puQ.
(3) The organization of ofces foHows the principle of hierarchy;
that is, each lower ofce is under the control and supervision of a
higher one. There is a right of. appeal and of statement of grievances
from
the lower to the higher. Hierarchies difer in rept to whether and in
what cases complaints can lead to a "corret" ruling from a higher
authority itself, or whether the responsibility for such changes is left to the
lower ofce, the conduct of which was the subjet of the complaint.
(4) The rules which regulate the conduct of an ofce may be techni
cal rules or norms.2 In both cases, if their application is to b funy ra
tional, specialized training i necessary. It is thus nonnally true that only
a prson who has demonstrate an adequate technical training is qualifed
to be a member of the 'administrative staf of such an organized group,
and hence only such persons are eligible for appintment to ofcial
poitions. The administrative staf of a rational organization thus typically
consists of "ofcials," whether the organizton b devote to plitical,
hieroratic, economic-in particular, capitalistc-or other ends,
(,} In the rational git is a matter o principle that the' members
of the administratve staf should b completely separate from owner-
ii ]
Legal Authority With a Bureaucratic Staf
ship of the means of prouctioI} or administration. Ofcials, employees,
and workers attached to the administrative staf do not themselves own
the non-human means of prouction and administration. These are
rather provided for their use, in kind or in money, and the officiHI is
obligated to render an accounting of their use. There exists, furthfrmore,
in principle complete separation of the organization's property (respec
tively, capital), and the personal property (household) of the oHldal.
There is a corresponding separation of the place in which ofcial func
tions are carried outthe "ofce" in the sense of Pfcl'lises-from the living
quarters.
(6) In the rational type case, there is also a complete absence of
appropriation of his ofcial position by the incumbent. \here "rights" to
an ofce exist, as in the case of judges, <nd recently of an increasing
proportion of ofcials and even of wrkers, they do not normally serve
the purose of appropriation by the oficial, but of securing he purely
objective and independent character of the conduct of the ofce so that
it is oriented only to the relevant norms.
,
(7) Administrative acts, decisions, and rules are formulated and
recorded in writing, even in cases ',vhere oral discussion is the rule or is
even mandatory. This applies at least to preliminary di<cussions dnd
proposals, to fnal decisions, and to all sorts of orders and rules. The
combination of written douments and a continuous operation by
ofcials constitutes the "ofce" (Bureau) which is the central fOLuS
of all types of modern organized action . .
(8) Legal authority can be exercised in a wide variety of diferent
forms which will be distinguished and discussed later. The following
ideal-typical analysis will b deliberately confned for the time being to
the administrative staf that is most unambiguously a structure of domi
nation: "ofcialdom" or "bureaucracy."
In the above outline no mention has been made of the kind of head
approriate to a system o legal authority. This is a consequence of cer
tain considerations which can only be made entirely understandable at
a later stage in the analysis. There are very important types of rational
domination which, with respect to the ultimate source of authvrity, be
long to other categories+ This is true of the hereditary charismatic type,
as illustrated by hereditary monarchy, and of the pure charismatic type
of a president chosen by a plebiscite. Other cases involve rational ele
ments at important points, but are made up of a combination o bureau
cratic and charismatic components, as i true of the cabinet form of
government. Still others are subject to the authority of the chiefs of other
organizations, whether their character be charismatic or bureaucratic;
thus the formal head of a government department under a parliamentary
T TYES OF LEGITIMATE DMINATION [ Ch. III
rime may b a minist who oupie his piton bcaus of his au
I}.
Even where it is carried out in money terms, the fnancing of pa
trimonialism and even more of sultanism tends to have irrational con
sequences for the following reasons:
IJThe obligations placed on sources of diret taxation tend both in
amount and in kind to remain bound to tradition. At the same time
there is complete freedom-'and hence arbitrariness-in the detennina
tion of a) fees and b) of newly imposed obligations, and c) in the
organization of monopolies. This element of arbitrrines is at leas
claime as a right. It is historically most efective in case a), bcause the
lord and his staf must be asked for the "favor" of action, far less efec
tive in case b), and of varying efectiveness in case c).
2) Two bases of the rationalization of economic activity are entirely
lackin
!
i
,
J
iii ]
T raircl Authot 2 3
9
ratonalizing efet by systematcally cultivatng its source of taxation
and by organizing monolie rationally. This, however, is "a u"
and depndent on Spefc historical circumstance, some mwhich existe
in the O ident.
If there is etate-type division of pwers, scal plicy tnds to a
result of compromise. This make the burdens relatively preictable and
eliminate
-
or at least sharply limit the ruler's powers to imp new
burdens and, above all, to create monoplies. \hether the reultng
hplicy tends to promote or to limit rational economic activity de
pnds largly on the typ of ruling group; primarily, it depnds on
whether it is a feudl or a patan stratum. The dominance of the
feudal stratum tends, bause the structure O feudalize pers of @~
erment is normally patrimonial, t set rigid limit to the freom o
acquisitive activity and the development of market. It may even involve
delibrate attempts to suppres them to protet the pwer of m fudal
stratum. The predominance of a patrician [urban] stratum may have the
oppite efect.
, Ii 'hat has b sid abve must suffe fo m prent. It will b
nes r to retur to te quets reptely qIerent conne
tos.
, m IA): the ok c anciet Eg ad i h IB):
larg pr the Mccm wol me_ Roman Empire, Cha, In
dia, t sme extent Rusia t Ic W IC).rmQ
to s extent the Byzntne Empr, and i a dHferent way the regime
o te Start in England; ID): t O iden s m
the prio M "elighrne dn ," e.8y Ct
s
p .
.
. It
'
is not only the fnancal plley o mo, pmp
which tends to retrict the devd.t of rato em nvq, b
abve all the general charactr mteir ainttV Ti
-