Study On "the England Problem" In Weber’s Sociology Of Law

Rationalization has been considered as a core in the research of Max Weber’s socialscience theory all the time, either as a consequential or a procedural analysis. Beingthe most important part of Weber’s Substantive Sociology, the sociology of law is alsonot spared. As a part of the history of western law, Weber’s legal sociology aime athighlighting the rationalization and knowledge of Western society, just like hissociology. However, there comes an academic debate when analysed therationalization of law:"the England Problem", that if England doesn’t have a formalrational legal system, how capitalism rised and developed in England. Two campshave been divided around this debate, one side argues that the problem really exist inWeber’s theory; the other denies this problem. Both of them demonstrate theirstandpoints from different angles.This article holds that " the England Problem" does not exist, analyzed mainlyfrom the angle of methodology. Weber’s methodology is an important analytical toolfor his study in history and society. In the vast majority of his works, Weber obtainedthe precision of concepts through refining them in methodology; at the same time, heexamined those concepts’ appropriateness in the concrete research. This paperanalyzes Weber’s methodology mainly from two aspects: The causal analysis theoryand ideal type theory, and applies the two tools to "the England Prpblem". This articlethinks that the England Problem is not only a misunderstanding of Weber’s causalanalysis theory, but also an incomprehension of his ideal type theory. If we put it inthe causal and ideal type theory, we would find that the problem does not exist. Thispaper consists of three parts, part one mainly introduces the background and purposeof Weber’s methodology; part two mainly on Weber’s causal theory, discusses twoimportant concepts:" objective possibility" and "appropriate causal relationship", thenanalyzes the relationship between capitalism and formal rationality under the causaltheory, shows what the exact causal relationship is between them; part three discusses thebasic concepts and ideas of "ideal type" theory, explains that either the formal rational law or thecapitalism itself is a kind of "ideal type", if they associate the constructed Utopia whichdoes not exist with reality, it goes against Weber’s intention completely.