Page 150 - 《社会》2025年第5期

马克斯·韦伯“祛魅”概念的两个来源：一个思想谱系学的考察

Abstract：This paper attempts to trace the origins of Max Weber’s concept of
“disenchantment” （Entzauberung） and its associated narrative through a
combination of etymological analysis and and intellectual genealogy. It identifies two
primary sources：German Romanticism represented by Schiller, and the 17th鄄century
Dutch theologian Balthasar Bekker. In his work The Gods of Greece， Schiller
introduced the concept of“de鄄deification”（Entg觟tterung）， which was not merely
a nostalgic or anti鄄Enlightenment gesture， but an attempt to improve humanity
through the divine. German Romantics placed significant emphasis on“witchcraft”
or“magic”（Zauber）， proposing monism and aesthetics as pathways to overcome the
shortcomings of a mechanistic worldview； Meanwhile Bekker’s anti鄄witchcraft
stance， drawing upon Cartesian dualism， argues for the ineffectiveness of witchcraft
in defense of faith. Both approaches left their own unresolved issues： German
Romanticism’s aesthetic solution remained accessible only to a small intellectual
elite， failing to address society as a whole， while its anthropomorphic theology
proved unrealistic. Bekker’s anti鄄witchcraft position， on the other hand， encountered
two formidable challenges: the relationship between magic and religion， and the
universal history of human religion. Weber’s writings during World War I
synthesised insights from both sources， addressing their respective unresolved
problems to complete a “closure” of critical inquiry. On one hand， he recognized
the void of meaning in modern civilization， advocating for “vocation”（Beruf） to
combat the existential weariness； on the other， he proposed a historical schema of
religious development， where the“disenchantment of religion” spilling over into the
“disenchantment of the world”， which in turn created room for discussions of“re鄄
enchantment” against the backdrop of the“clash of the gods”.
Keywords：disenchantment， Re鄄enchantment， Max Weber， German Romanticism，
Balthasar Bekker

生命之根遗失在黑暗中， 生命的魔力依赖于难解的神秘
之物。
——奥古斯特·施莱格尔（伯林：2008：123）
—
一、 引言

“祛魅”（德语：Entzauberung；英语：disenchantment）是一个学术谜团，
在包括社会学在内的人文学科和社会科学领域中， 很少有一个概念能

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