试论曼德维尔的启蒙思想

On Mandeville’s Enlightening Thought

伯纳德·曼德维尔的代表作是一部政治讽刺诗集《蜜蜂寓言———私恶即公益》,其核心命题是私恶即公益。在市场社会里,通过交换与竞争的自发作用,将使追逐私利的各个经济主体在客观上促进他人目的的实现,亦即对公益有所贡献。在近代思想史上,曼氏第一个发现私人利益与社会利益将自然调和。国外学者认为,曼氏的思想首次揭示了市场社会的基本原理。但其理论表述的欠缺之处,亦须充分认识。

Bernard Mandeville′s reprentative work is a poetic piece of political satire, The Fable of the Bees: Or Private Vices, Public Benefits. In the market economy, private interests will further others′ personal ends, contributing to public benefits. In the history of modern thought, Mandeville was the first to find out that private interests and public interests may converge naturally. Foreign scholars agree that Mandeville′s thought has first revealed the basic principles of the market economy.However,it should clearly be realized that the theory is flawed by its lack of accuraly.