Quinn Lecture: Elizabeth Anderson (University of Michigan)

Abstract: The great social theorist Max Weber depicted the Puritan divines who invented the Protestant work ethic as rationalizing the consignment of workers to relentless, tedious drudgery for the sake of maximum profit. He was only half right. A deeper dive into their thinking reveals impressive normative resources for uplifting that status of workers, improving the conditions and benefits of working, and advancing an ideal of meaningful work that has yet to be surpassed. They were also astute business ethicists who criticized predatory and merely extractive business models. Their moral principles supply resources for criticizing the destructive capitalist business models that have flourished in the neoliberal era.