Abstract:

Abstract: Since his introduction to China in the 1980s, Max Weber has been one of the most influencing Western sociologists in the Chinese academia for the good match of his complex ideas to the needs of the modernization there. Even so, his ideas are not free of challenges in the Chinese context. In this essay, the author compared Max Weber with Mu Zongsan, a representative of Neo-Confucianism, in their conceptions relative to the Western or Chinese culture, and clarified the complementary relationship between Confucianism and Western theoretical reason. Considering the features native to the Chinese or Western culture, the author criticized Max Weber’s Eurocentrim, which was contrasted to the inclusiveness of the Chinese culture.

Key words: Max Weber, theoretical reason, moral reason, Eurocentrism