“相似与相非”:卢梭与斯密的商业社会观

“Parallels and Contrasts”:A Comment on the Ideas of Commercial Society of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Adam Smith

伊什特万·洪特的遗著《商业社会中的政治:让-雅克·卢梭和亚当·斯密》自2015年出版后便获得了英语学界的深入讨论。这部讲稿在“商业的社会性”“政府的历史”“政治经济学”三大主题下比较了卢梭和斯密的商业社会观,表明斯密与卢梭比人们通常认为的更具有亲近性。洪特关切的是,从政治经济学的角度讨论民族国家在全球化国际竞争中的政治和经济策略及其影响;其论断可以商榷,但其关切点值得深思。

The posthumous work of Istvan Hont,Politics in Commercial Society:Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Adam Smith,has been discussed deeply in English academia since its publication in 2015.The lectures are divided into three major topics,including commercial sociability,the history of government and the political economy,and demonstrate the ideas of commercial society of Rousseau and Smith.Hont’s purpose is to illustrate parallels and contrasts of both thinkers.He believes that many of Smith’s ideas are much closer to Rousseau’s than the common opinions recognize,and expresses his concern about the political and economic policies and their influences of national states on globalized international competition.Hont’s conclusions need to be further discussed,but his considerations are worth of more contemplations.