Trust society

Author: (French) Péretti
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-22
Features: The influence of French thought and culture on the world is immense. Descartes' rationalism, Montesquieu's legal philosophy, and Rousseau's political theory are the pillars of Western modern thought and political culture; the doctrines of figures like Foucault, Derrida, and Deleuze laid the foundation for postmodern thought and political culture. Their revolutionary approach transformed human minds and societies. Our institution has always attached great importance to introducing Western learning and enlightening the people by translating French works on thought and culture. In 1906, we published Yan Fu's translation of Montesquieu's The Spirit of the Laws, setting a precedent, and in 1918, we compiled and published the Shangzhi Society Series, which included many such works. Since then, new translations have continued to emerge, and over a century of translations have become a magnificent collection, greatly benefiting the development of Chinese thought and culture. Our institution's past translations of French works focused primarily on classics, mostly published as standalone volumes. To facilitate a comprehensive understanding of French thought and culture among scholars, we have now compiled this Translation Series of Contemporary French Thought and Culture, systematically translating the major works of contemporary French thinkers. Our stance is not confined to a single school; any work that contributes to the development of thought and culture, whether modern or postmodern, is included. The disciplines covered are not limited to one field, such as philosophy, political science, history, religious studies, sociology, and anthropology, with works from all these fields being incorporated. We hope to receive strong support from the academic community to make this series increasingly perfect.
What is development? What drives modernity, progress, and economic growth? From Adam Smith, Karl Marx, and Max Weber to Fernand Braudel, people have continuously explored the roots of national wealth or poverty. Most thinkers emphasize material causes: capital, labor, natural resources, and climate. Could it be that ideas and attitudes are the elements of development or underdevelopment? To test this highly promising hypothesis, Alain Péretti proposes a fresh look at the history of Western Christian nations from the 15th to the 18th centuries. He particularly demonstrates that Europe's development stemmed from what he calls the "virtue of trust"—a quality that broke traditional taboos, fostering innovation, mobility, competition, and a rational yet responsible entrepreneurial spirit. Is it not precisely this trust that we need to reclaim today? How can we do so?