世界史的異例：由韋伯方法論看台灣和香港

Rethinking the Positions of Hong Kong and Taiwan in World History: Based on the Methodology of Max Weber

香港在1997回歸中國後，由於有「一國兩制」的保護傘，基本上仍是與西方倡議的「普世價值」接軌的社會，自由、人權、法治、乃至民主，都是主流的「集體意識」，而2014年風起雲湧的「反送中」運動，可說是一個分水嶺。2021年開始，北京當局則開始強力施行「國安法」，香港就此不再具有由英國殖民開始的某種「異例」地位。

相對而言，台灣的民主化成果，是否代表華人群居社會的另外一種「異例」？本篇評論嘗試借用韋伯論述基督新教倫理和資本主義精神之間歷史脈絡的方法論，以「世界史異例之想像」來探討特殊條件下形成的「因果鎖鏈」，或可協助我們進行某種攸關中國、台灣和香港未來命運的思想實驗。

本篇評論分析，台灣過去基於種種因緣際會的組合元素，成為克服威權體制、落實自由民主價值的成功案例。這使得台灣具備了目前全球「抗中」形勢下的戰略位置，並有資格被視作是「世界史的異例」。然而究竟在「普世價值」和「中華民族偉大復興」兩種意識形態的鬥爭下，孰能真正勝出？恐怕就如韋伯所承認，歷史進展中處處隱含著「理性化的弔詭」，除了人為的「責任倫理」努力外，恐怕仍存在若干不可知力量(如理念式的「卡里斯瑪」)，有如轉轍器般，改變了軌道的方向。且讓世人拭目以待！

 

At the time of Hong Kong’s return to China in 1997, freedom, human rights, the rule of law, and democracy, which are among the universal values of Western culture, were mainstream values in Hong Kong’s collective consciousness. However, the Umbrella Movement in 2014 was a watershed moment in Hong Kong’s history. Beginning in 2021, the People’s Republic of China began to enforce the National Security Act, with Hong Kong no longer maintaining the special status it had held since British colonization.

In the context of Chinese communities, is Taiwan’s democratization exceptional? In this review, Weber’s theory of the historical connection between Protestant ethics and the capitalist spirit is applied to explore the causal chain of the world’s historical process. This exploration entails a thought experiment of sorts, the conclusions of which may have vital implications for the future of China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

This review analyzes how Taiwan has succeeded in overcoming an authoritarian system and implementing the values of liberal democracy. As a polity that successfully transitioned to liberal democracy, Taiwan is perceived to be strategically important by other democracies in under a climate of rising tension with China. It remains unknown whether the global order created and fostered by liberal democracies will continue to occupy a central position in world affairs or if China will succeed in carving out an increasingly significant role in world affairs. Based on the Methodology of Max Weber, this review article tries to analyze the current situation in Hong Kong and Taiwan, then point out the special meaning of these two examples in the world history.