Hayek's name may be familiar to people in China, but there are not many people who have a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of his thoughts and ideas, even in the Chinese intellectual circles.It is the last work of Hayek during his lifetime, and it is also one of his most important and representative works.At the same time, as one of the "Western Modern Thought Series", this is also the third time he has chosen to translate and introduce his works (the first two are "The Road to Serfdom" and "The Charter of Freedom").And this work is different from the previous ones. To some extent, it is actually "the summary of Hayek's ideological efforts against 'totalitarian socialism' that he has opposed throughout his life."It is precisely because this book embodies the theme of Hayek's comprehensive and systematic criticism of his so-called "socialism" that he believes that the idea of ​​"socialism" is a "fatal conceit" and "a fallacy" that it The translation and publication of the book is bound to have an impact on Chinese readers.In this way, how to correctly understand the concept of Hayek's so-called "socialism" has naturally become a problem of concern.

In fact, Hayek's "so-called 'totalitarian socialism' refers to the kind of 'socialism' that appeared in Europe in the first half of the 20th century. The third world socialism' is fundamentally different. The latter's legitimacy is based on the self-awareness of national interests oppressed by Western colonialism, while the former's legitimacy is based on the longing for the 'other shore' of the status quo of Western capitalism. European socialism, like its opposite - European capitalism, is defined by Weber as 'rational socialism', which constitutes a pair of political categories with 'rational capitalism'. From this perspective, Hayek The subtitle of this book - 'The Fallacy of Socialism' spells out the critique of 'socialism', so it should be understood as a critique of 'rational socialism' and its ideological root - 'constructive rationality'".Hayek's spearhead actually refers to the "socialist ideal" touted by most "leftist" parties in Western countries advocated by Weber and other representatives.This is what readers must grasp when reading this book.

Secondly, Hayek, as a theorist highly respected by the right-wing political forces in western countries, is self-evident in his opposition to Marxism, but Hayek interprets his ideas more from an academic point of view , and there are some "bright spots" among them.For example, Hayek opposed hegemony in the field of ideology.Oppose the practice of certain Western countries to promote their values ​​to the world by virtue of their economic and political strength.Although he advocated the liberal market economy and defended the current capitalist system throughout his life, he called it "spontaneous order" and "extended order"; but he believed that this "extended order" could only It was "formed spontaneously over a long period of time without anyone knowing the consequences".It is not "the result of some subject's conscious design."It follows from this that it cannot be imposed or promoted by external forces. The "order" a country chooses is the result of its own internal factors.

Finally, it needs to be emphasized that Hayek advocated and defended the free market economy, and tried to beautify it with his theory of "extended order", so that politicians such as Thatcher and Reagan regarded it as the new "township economy". Treasure of the mountain", but its disadvantages are also obvious.The environmental problems caused by the market economy, the suffering caused by material inequality, the waste of resources, and the inability to give full play to human skills and talents, etc., indicate that there are objective reasons for state intervention in the economy. Hayek He is also well aware of this, although he frankly admits these facts, but he does nothing and chooses to avoid and remain silent.

Wang Hao September 2000