“在那里”与“在这里”——试谈社会人类学在中国

“Being there” and “Being here”:A Preliminary Review of Social Anthropology in China

借用Clifford Geertz的"在那里"、"在这里"两个概念,尝试厘清中、西人类学的演进与差异。欧美人类学最初主要研究非西方社会,其欧洲中心主义以及进化论取向明显。费孝通及其同道自1930年代在中国农村的家乡人类学实验,虽有接近被研究者、熟悉当地文化的优势,但相对于其他学派,在发展的早期总是处于边缘地位,而在后期则与官方话语游离和疏远,故此也难有自由发展的条件。近些年急剧变迁的社会后果,如贫富差距、乡村凋敝、严重的水土污染等,有违费孝通的志业和梦想。

This paper,based on Clifford Geertz＇s concepts ＂Being there＂and ＂Being here＂,tries to describe different landscapes of the western anthropology and Chinese anthropology.European and U.S Anthropology is Euro-centrism and Evolutionism oriented.From 1930 s, Hsiao-Tung Fei and his colleagues started ＂native anthropology＂experiment in rural China.Though it benefited from being close with the informants and being familiar with local culture,this perspective could not compete with other schools,and later it was dissociated from governmental discourse with limited freedom.The recent consequences of dramatic social changes,such as rich-poor gap,the decadence of the rural and serious water and soil pollution,go against Fei＇s life-long ambition.