語言人類學對跨文化研究的啟示

The Heuristic Implications of the Approaches Linguistic Anthropology Exercised on Cross Cultural Studies

哲學與社會理論因為具有系統性及邏輯上的一致性，往往能夠自圓其說，得到論證上的合法性。然而，系統性與邏輯上的一致性並非真理的保證。從語言人類學對跨文化比較的研究，我們可以得見理論的相對性格，所有的理論、思維架構、概念範疇、推論模式，都是在特定歷史與文化的場域中孕育出來的，因此，沒有那一套理論可以宣稱其絕對性。理論的絕對性，是建立在思維者所接受的心智模式與文化架構之上，將其放到歷史與比較文化的脈絡中檢視，其絕對性就喪失了客觀基礎，只能在相對主義立場上堅持其絕對性。語言的局限就是思維的極限，人們是透過語言架構來認識世界。語言人類學研究，不急於建構理論，以務實態度認識文化，值得其他學科參考尊重。哲學與社會理論不能再躲在象牙塔裡，而應面對真實世界。

By its systematic and logical uniformity, philosophy and social theories get their argumentation legitimacy. However systematic and logical uniformity should not be the warranty and criteria of the truth and the legitimacy of human cultures. The approaches Linguistic Anthropology exercised on cross cultural studies make the relativity obvious. All theories, frameworks of thinking, conceptual categories, inference patterns, are conceived in the specific historical and cultural fields, therefore, not that a theory can claim its absolute nature. The absolute nature of a theory, is built on the ground of the mental model and cultural architecture he who accepted, and will loss its objective basis when we put it back to its historical contexts and exam it from comparative cultural perspectives. It can insist on its absolute nature only base on the condition of relativism. The limitations of a language are the limits of its speakers; people comprehend the world through the architecture of a specific language. Linguistic anthropology, base on a pragmatic attitude and not hurrying to build a theory prematurely, is worthy to respect for all other disciplines. Philosophy and social theories should not be knowledge in the Ivy Towel anymore.