TY - JOUR

T1 - Weber and Geertz on the meaning of religion.

AU - Segal, Robert A.

PY - 1999/1

Y1 - 1999/1

N2 - Clifford Geertz often cites Max Weber as the pioneering ‘interpretive’ social scientist. But the approaches of Weber and Geertz to interpretation differ sharply. Both associate interpretation with meaning, but they diverge on the nature of meaning, on the relationship between meaning and cause, and on the consequent relationship between interpretation and explanation. While both use ‘meaning’ not only asintentbut also as significance, ormeaningfulness, they diverge on the origin of meaningfulness, on the form meaningfulness takes and on the threats to meaningfulness.

AB - Clifford Geertz often cites Max Weber as the pioneering ‘interpretive’ social scientist. But the approaches of Weber and Geertz to interpretation differ sharply. Both associate interpretation with meaning, but they diverge on the nature of meaning, on the relationship between meaning and cause, and on the consequent relationship between interpretation and explanation. While both use ‘meaning’ not only asintentbut also as significance, ormeaningfulness, they diverge on the origin of meaningfulness, on the form meaningfulness takes and on the threats to meaningfulness.

U2 - 10.1006/reli.1998.0178

DO - 10.1006/reli.1998.0178

M3 - Journal article

VL - 29

SP - 61

EP - 71

JO - Religion

JF - Religion

SN - 0048-721X

IS - 1

ER -