Enchanted Prophet in the Disenchanted World: A Comparative Study of Max Weber and Kahili Gibran’s Conceptualization of Prophet

Abstract

Since its first publication in 1923, Kahili Gibran’s The Prophet has been exceptionally well received as the highest-selling and most-translated books ever (Waterfield 1998, 257; Buck 2010, 113; Kalem 2018). The ironical popularity of this religious figure – a prophet who preaches in enchanted terms rather than scientific language – in modern times, which we generally consider disenchantment of the world, is worthy of inquiry. So, this essay attempts to investigate what it means to be a “prophet” in modern times and how conditions of disenchantment are thought through and dealt with through such a spiritual figure. It adopts Max Weber’s formulation of disenchantment because he indicates the persistence of prophetic beings when theorizing disenchantment in his two lectures, The Scholar’s Work (1917) and The Politician’s Work (1919). Through a close reading of Weber’s work lectures and Gibran’s spiritual poetry in a comparative manner, this paper demonstrates that, despite their apparent opposition, in Weber’s conceptualization of scholars and politicians, two modern works that take the place of religious prophets and Gibran’s conceptualization of the universalized prophet in modern time, they both emphasize the self-restraint of authority and the autonomy of individuals. They turn to the practice of work as an alternative way for individuals to obtain the meaning of life when religion could no longer provide such a thing. More precisely, by working with love in Gibran’s term, that is, with personal conviction and responsibility for Weber, people could come to their own meanings. The search for a new spring of meaning in modern times should be directed inwardly at human beings and individual selves rather than outwardly at divine powers or external authorities. As far as it concerns, we must remain vigilant about the prophetization of Weber and Gibran themselves.