白银在明清社会经济中生发的双重效应--兼评弗兰克与彭慕兰的"全球经济观"编造出的新神话

贡德·弗兰克与彭慕兰通过对明清时期西方白银流入东方过程的描述试图说明,直至18世纪中期,中国一直在世界经济中居于支配地位.这一观点对于打破长期流行的"欧洲中心论"的神话是有益的,它为人们重新认识世界历史提供了新的框架和角度.然而,白银在明朝中期以后的大量输入,虽然扩大了中国大一统经济系统的容量,促进了生产的扩张与贸易的发展,使濒于热寂状态的社会经济重新焕发了生机.但毫无疑问,这是以对自然资源和人力资源的超限榨取为代价的.白银加快了中国经济之轮的转速,却未能开拓出经济发展的新天地,反而使整个社会因资源的过度耗费而陷进了"高度平衡的陷阱".所以,弗兰克与彭慕兰在抛弃旧神话的同时,又编造出了一个新神话,即以"一体化全球经济"为前提的"大分流".

The Dual Eflects of silver in the Social Economy During the Ming and Qing Dynasties

Since the middle Ming dynasty , a big input of silver had enlarged capacity of the the econoucic system of Chinase empire , and promoted the expan on of production and the growth of trade , which waked up the empire's economy that was on the brink of "heat death". But , undoubtedly , it is at the costs of the over -squeezeing to the natural and laboural resources. While speeding up the wheel of economy , the silour , however , failed to open up a new land for economic growith. moreover, it made the Chinese society fall into a "high -level equilibrium trap".