Introduction

This chapter provides the reader with an introduction to the book. First, it covers previous traditions of making sense of the world prevalent both in China and Britain, such as sacral monarchy, and compares their historical development in both societies. From this comparison, the chapter then goes on to show the birth of a new worldview that regarded the nation as the central subject of human affairs. By disclosing the extent to which contemporary societies still take the main assumptions of this worldview for granted, the chapter emphasizes the necessity of understanding how this worldview is produced and reproduced. The chapter concludes with a statement of the objectives and the main thesis of the book.