<論文>社会科学の臨界点

Abstract

It is not the fact that "sleeping" nations has experienced their awakenings under the nationalism of modern era but, on the contrary, that nationalism has engendered nations. Ernest Gellner is one of the most popular scholars who theorized about nations and nationalism from a perspective of this formulation, and is also the distinguished social scientist who has energetically discussed the epistemological and ethical position of social sciences in the modern social context. This article is, as it were, "Encounters with Ernest Gellner" by reviewing his latest book, "Encounters with Nationalism". I discuss his thoughts from three different perspectives -- theory about nationalism, vision of post nationalism era, social position of the intellectuals. These three perspectives are indispensable for understanding his whole thoughts. But I especially focus on the third one, contrasting his view of the intellectual with that of Edward Said, because the difference between the two leads us to think about the orientation and epistemological base of social sciences. Thinking it must be critically important in the present intellectual situation where academic knowledge has no longer unquestionable authority. Gellner postulates rationalism (which gives a theoretical base for social sciences) as the epistemological ethics to evade nihilism of relativism and dogmatism of fundamentalism, both of which are influential in the current European society. But in my view, his ethics lies rather in his attitude that tries to make a stand on the critical point of social sciences where there is epistemological chaos full of conflicts and uncertainties.