Weber’s Disciples: Analyzing the Charismatic Aristocracy

• In Event: 543 - Regular Session. Symbolic Interaction

Abstract

While several studies have explored the interactional dynamics involved in the construction of charismatic power, most have neglected the role of what Weber termed the “charismatic aristocracy.” I revive this classical concept in a way that responds to contemporary calls for performative, follower-centric approaches to charisma. Specifically, the charismatic aristocracy is placed at the center of an analysis of a single, reiterative moment in charismatization: the point when influential followers generate content for the emerging charismatic persona. In these germinal moments, the fundamentally dialogical nature of charisma is most clear, precisely because it is then that charismatic leaders often are not themselves confident in their charismatic status, and can be found responding to instructional cues—indeed following the lead—of those positioning themselves as obsequious followers. Drawing on ten years of ethnographic research, extensive media collections, and multistage interviews with followers, this paper provides an interactionist account of the charismatic ascension of John de Ruiter, leader of a successful contemporary new religious movement. The paper concludes by tabling a model that accounts for how the Gemeinde, with ‘recognition’ serving as its organizing principle, functions to lead leaders and followers toward increasingly intense forms of charismatic interaction. The charismatic aristocracy is conceived as an important fulcrum for expectation, affectation, and recognition during these interactions.

Author

• Paul Joosse, University of Hong Kong