Science et sublimation de l'État
En Chine pendant la période impériale tardive
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2954786 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Pierre-Étienne Will (0000-0001-5305-3657, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2000 |
| Volume | 133 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 13-25 |
| Publication date | 2000-06-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Actes de la recherche en sciences sociales (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0335-5322 • E-ISSN: 1955-2564 |
| Publisher | CAIRN (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.3917/arss.p2000.133n1.0013 |
| OpenAlex | W2523423418 |
| Language | FR |
| Citations received | 7 |
Science and sublimation of the State. The bureaucratization of the modern European monarchies and the concomitant emergence of a "science of the State" resulted in the growing autonomy of the administrator, and ultimately threw into question the very principles of the legitimacy of royalty. Can comparable processes be detected in the history of imperial China ? The present article focuses on the last centuries of this history (roughly contemporary with those of modern Europe) and attempts to give some idea of the complex relationship between a dynastic power placing greater-than-ever emphasis on the religious foundations of its legitimacy and a bureaucracy in which power and knowledge are divided among numerous levels and ranks. The ultimate science of the State was knowledge of the Classics, which were consulted on the principles of the Emperor's legitimacy as well as the values that should guide the administration placed at his service. Very early on, the scholar-civil servants considered themselves as the depositaries of this science : in certain circumstances, they did not hesitate to oppose the proponents of dynasty. Furthermore, the growth of the society and that, correlative, of the State over the last millennium had led to the development of an extremely complex machinery of laws and regulations, which constituted another type of "science" vulnerable to being taken over by lower-ranking specialists denounced as ideologically unqualified. Finally, the many procedures and practices not sanctioned by the texts but without which the State would be unable to function partake of a "behind-the-scenes science" disparaged but universally practiced. Adding together the different levels produces a "science of the State" that largely eluded control of the imperial power. From the end of the 16th century, one sees the emergence of a professional elite of model administrators seeking to combine the ethical and technical dimensions of this fragmented knowledge so as to make it both more workable and respectable. Their loudly proclaimed objective was to serve the people (the idea of nation appeared only at the very end of the period) ; the notion of serving the dynastic institution was relegated to a de facto if not openly marginal position
Ancient history · Bureaucracy · Emperor · Humanities · Ideology · Legitimacy · Monarchy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Chinese history and philosophy · European Political History Analysis · Historical Economic and Social Studies · Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis · History · Law · Philosophy
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| Unique citing works | 5 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,29 |
| Citation span | 2002 - 2017 (16) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 5 |