Meaningful Social Theory: the Cross-civilisational Perspective

Abstract

Never before have the human and social sciences, or the scientists, borne witness to such an explosion of theory, under its many labels: theory building, theoretical systems, theoretical essays, readers on theory, epistemological works on the theory of theory (a sort of ‘Prolegomena to all possible theories’), theoretical manifestos, philosophy, sociology and psychology of theoretical processes, etc. In their wake, the concept of theory itself begins to waver; from the classical philosophical position to a highly fluctuating and ambiguous status in recent approaches.¹ By and large one can reasonably see this process of theorising as a response to the deeply felt need in the human and social sciences to find a new, universally valid, structured interpretation of societies in our contemporary world.

Where there are three men walking together, one or other of them will certainly be able to teach me something.

Confucius

Perhaps the whole question reduces to the active practice of humility and brotherly love. We need a real conviction that all racialism, all self-satisfied beliefs of cultural superiority, are a denial of the world-community.

Joseph Needham