政治学视角下的郑和下西洋与哥伦布等的远航

郑和下西洋为什么没有后继者,没有使中国更加开放、更加富强?而为什么晚于郑和近百年的哥伦布等西欧航海家的远洋探险航行却揭开了西欧殖民扩张和资本主义大发展的序幕?这两个问题是学术界早就讨论过的:有主要从海洋意识、海权观念方面考虑的,也有主要从历史背景方面考虑的。本文使用政治学中有关利益的理论,从目的与利益的关系的角度尝试对这两个问题进行回答。

On Zheng He''''s Voyages to Western Ocean and Columbus'''' Expedition under the Perspective of Political Science

Why is it that Zheng He's voyages to Western Ocean ended with no successor and hadn't made China more open to the world,more abundant or stronger,while the expeditions made by such western European navigators as Columbus,though nearly 100 years later than Zheng He's voyages,preluded western Europe's colonial expansion and the great development of capitalism? The question has long been discussed in academic circles,some mainly in terms of ocean consciousness and ocean dominion concept,and some mainly with reference to the history background.This article makes use of the theory about interest in politics to attentively answer the question from the angle of the relations between purpose and interest.