Integrity, modesty and self-reliance were some virtues that emanated from Christianity in early 19th century America. These virtues became the foundation for American capitalism, especially in the conservative post-World War II era, during the time of President Eisenhower.
But, how do we hold up to these virtues today? And how is our individual work ethic being upheld?
In a nation riddled with citizens in debt, these virtues are hard to come by. Not enough Americans are embracing strong virtues, such as dedication and perseverance, which are needed for a thriving capitalist democracy. These foundational virtues slowly lost their meaning as people lost the work ethic exemplified by people of generations past. People began to focus on profit and outcomes, and ultimately became greedier. German sociologist and political economist, Max Weber, foresaw this corruption.
In his book “The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism,” Weber wrote “the impulse to acquisition, pursuit of gain, of money, of the greatest possible amount of money, has in itself nothing to do with capitalism. Unlimited greed for gain is not in the least identical with capitalism, and still less its spirit.”
On the other hand, Benjamin Franklin’s more traditional American perspective praised the value of working to acquire wealth. This unyielding work ethic for success, and survival, became the modus operandi for many citizens of the past. Today, many people still operate this way. Some people still think the fruit of their labor is evidence that they are hard workers. In the 1960s, there was a dysfunctional disintegration of this old mindset. Radicalism and self-entitlement took over. The advancing liberal mind set influenced the “me” generation of the 1970s. Then, new economic issues destroyed Americans’ money-saving mentality, but by the 1980s, things began to improve with economic stimulations implemented by Ronald Reagan.
America, however, was forever changed; it lost a bit of the “rational tempering” and the “pursuit of gain” that Weber envisioned as essential for obtaining “forever renewed profit.”
Students especially should value the journey towards their ambitions rather than focus on the end result alone. In a society that still seems to be profit-driven, we forget what it really takes to be successful.
