中西启蒙“民主”观在价值源头上的差异

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中国明末清初的启蒙思想家与西方 17世纪的“社会契约论”者一样 ,都顺应历史演进的规律而将价值目标指向“民主”。但由于中西“文化元精神”的歧离与启蒙境遇的差异 ,双方的“民主”观在价值源头上就存在着层次上的差距。在中国 ,即使最彻底的“民主”思想家黄宗羲 ,也只是在“天下为主 ,君为客”的理据上扬弃了作为“君道”的民本思想 ,并未对君主专制制度作根本的否定。因此 ,中国启蒙学者对君权的批判 ,只是在“解构”的视角上可理解为有“民主”价值 ,但在“建构”的意义上 ,相对近代“民主意识”

The enlightenment thinker of Chinese and the western Theory of Social Contract in 17 century have the same , comply with the historical law developed to enter to worth goal of democracy. But because of Chinese and Western cultural tradition is away from the discrepancy with enlightenment circumstances, the mutual sight of democracy is fountainhead go up have the gap on shelf degree. In China, even if the most thorough thinker Huang Zhongxi, is also in meaning whither the whole nation is master and the monarch is guest to sublate such thought of the people being basis as Tao of absolute monarchy , but, have not made this root for the system of autocratic monarchy negate. Therefore, the criticism of Chinese enlightenment scholar for monarchical power is been only on the visual angle of deconstruction to understand to worth for having democracy, but on the meaning of establishment , relative modern democratic consciousness has considerable distance yet.