Abstracts

Max Weber Studies Vol. 2 No. 1 (November 2001): 81-101

The Politics of Intellectual Integrity

Richard Wellen

Weber’s model of value-freedom is particularly unsatisfying to those who associate it with the positivist or relativist drift of modern thought. Of course, Weber contended that value judgments are inherent in the context of thought, even if they are not within the competence of scientific reason. In this paper I address the goal of intellectual integrity that is normally attributed to Weber’s methodological injunction to separate facts and values. In particular, I argue that Weber saw intellectual integrity—at least implicity—as a political and cultural strategy that remains instructive today. Finally, a comparison with the recent work of Richard Rorty allows us to raise new issues as to whether Weber’s separation between politics and science is necessary to fulfill his intention of preserving the independence and relevance of scientific practices and institutions.