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Nataša M. Jovanović Ajzenhamer
VIEW OF THE FOREIGN POLICIY POSITION OF THE GERMAN EMPIRE FROM THE CORNER OF THE HISTORY OF SOCIOLOGICAL THEORISE: MAX WEBER ON INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
The paper presents the view of one of the most influential sociologists from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Max Weber, on the foreign policy relations of the Second Reich with Russia, Poland, the countries of the Triple Alliance, France, England, and with the “patient from Bosphorus”. We could see the differences in the rhetoric he used: while in the case of Austro-Hungary, France and Great Britain, rational geopolitical logic prevailed, in the case of Russia and Poland, dominated issues was related to ethics, national character, religion and art. When it comes to the Orient, we have identified the return to a pragmatic narrative: Turkey was, in the eyes of Max Weber, Germanyʼs ideal ally in the Orient, and he did not much go into a deeper analysis of civilizational and religious relations between Orient and Occident. Using a comparison of his scientific preoccupations and (relatively) objective conclusions in scientific studies with messages he made in political speeches, we have received a new look at the dualism of Weber’s biography; In the domestic professional and wider public, he was first known as a scientist and only then as a political worker, however, Weber was very interested in the development of German society, both on the internal political and foreign policy plan. In this paper, this second aspect is clarified. Therefore, this work has a double disciplinary significance: it represents a contribution to the history of social and political ideas, but it is also a contribution to and the history of international relations. By analyzing Weberʼs view of political turmoil in the period between Bismarckʼs rule and the reign of Wilhelm II, we got an interesting “the inside” view on the situation in the German empire shortly before and during the First World War. Weberʼs foreign policy analysis is interesting precisely because it also sublimates a holistic scientific approach (he linked historical processes, cultures, religions and traditions with military capabilities, degree of economic development and geopolitical position), but also an aggravated and fairly realistic view of the current situation by a very active political actor. This paper presents an overview of the most important political conclusions of one of the most influential intellectuals since the beginning of the twentieth century. Also, in the paper we also presented the genesis of these conclusions, which gave a dynamic and developmental view of the European political scene, as well as the creativity and interests of Max Weber himself.