陌生人的歷史意義──亞當史密斯論商業社會的倫理基礎

Historical Significance of the Stranger: Adam Smith on Ethical Foundation of Commercial Society

亞當史密斯認為陌生人的湧現是氏族社會衰微的結果。而氏族社會之衰微，又與商業社會的逐步發展息息相關。面對不可回逆的歷史變遷，道德哲學必須提出對應，探討陌生人的倫理意義。本文認為，史密斯的回應方式是曼德維爾、盧梭、哈其森等人道德哲學的折衷主義。史密斯在《道德情操論》中區分三種道德層次：傑出或偉人德性、常民之德、正義。而欲培養常民之德與正義，須先認識、培養社會化的自愛──在照顧己身利益的同時，了解自身只是芸芸眾生之一，因此需平等看待一己幸福與他人幸福。而社會化之自愛的最佳孕育與體現場所，正在於陌生人社群之中。陌生人社會或商業社會雖是自然人性與歷史演化的綜合產物，但透過對社會化自愛的認識，商業社會足以建構新的倫理秩序；陌生人得以被接受成為擬公民；而他們彼此亦能成為擬親屬。本文認為，《國富論》所指涉的社會，尤其是國際貿易社會，其實就是陌生人社會；而其道德基礎就是《道德情操論》中所談論的常民之德、正義、社會化自愛，而非傑出德性。理解陌生人之倫理，可以幫助我們掌握理解史密斯此二經典著作之間的內在親密關係。

Adam Smith observes that the gradual dissolution of the ties among the kinsmen of a clan or of those in a close-knit society is a historical consequence of the development of commerce, which in turn, gives rise to a society of strangers, especially in international commercial society. Moral philosophy must respond to these natural and inexorable historical changes. In The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Smith distinguishes between three kinds of morality: great men’s virtues, ordinary people’s virtues and justice. The principle underlying ordinary virtues and justice is self-love in its finest and socialized form: one takes care of his own happiness while equally respecting the interests and happiness of others. The best habitat for such a socialized self-love is the company of strangers, as this helps one reduce his selfish drive down to a level acceptable to others. Having been socialized, homo economicus is capable of conceiving of one another with commensurate self-love and justice, and these become the new prevailing principles setting commercial society on track. Consequentially, in commercial society, strangers are ethicized and legalized, able to enact the citizenship and pseudo-kinship they have established voluntarily. The society that Smith analyzes in the Wealth of Nations is the society of strangers. Its ethical principles are ordinary virtues, justice and socialized self-love. This article concludes that the Smithian ethics for the society of strangers is not only a common theme between TMS and WN, but also a hermeneutic bridge connecting them.