This text aims to revive, in an exploratory manner, some of the pioneering reflections of Durkheim and Weber in relation to the market. From the viewpoint of the current excitement in the field of the new economic sociology, we argue that Durkheim and Weber were responsible for originating the sociological study of the market as a social structure. In fact, they both showed that economic interests and the means by which they may be adequately pursued are defined socially, by institutions. In particular, traditional, moral and legal rules are seen as basic conditions for the regulation of the market. Moreover, giving rise to a reflection which today is seen as fundamental, both pointed towards the role of the State, the importance of which consists less in a direct regulation of the economy than in the diffusion of essential social values.
Market; Economic institutions; State; Durkheim; Weber