Religious Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism in Tunisia

The relationship between religion and entrepreneurial activity has been an ongoing subject of sociological interest since Weber (1958) first identified the association between Protestantism and the rise of capitalism in Western Europe. One recent collection of papers on the subject (Eisenstadt, 1968) indicates that the topic remains highly controversial, and that the debate moves in two general directions. Some analysts challenge (or support) the factual and/or theoretical validity of Weber's analysis as it applies to Western Europe, or to Protestantism (Green, 1959). Another branch of research attempts to apply the idea on a different level, finding other religious groups for which the theory is valid, in other parts of the world. Most such studies have been made in East and Southeast Asia, but there is a scattering of articles on other countries as well (Eisenstadt, 1968). Bellah (1963) cites several studies of merchant groups in Asia which conform to the Protestant ethic pattern, but points out that they seldom transform the norms of the whole society as Protestantism did in parts of Europe. Their impact is limited to a subgroup within society. These studies suggest that the Weberian thesis might apply on an intra-societal level in cultures different from Europe. The present study attempts to support this idea by positing a relationship between religious ethic and capitalism among a group of merchants in Tunisia who are members of a distinct religious sect within Islam.