Moral Hierarchy and Social Egoism in a Networked Society

Unlike its many counterparts in Western social theories, the concept of chaxugeju--Fei Xiaotong’s ideal-type characterization of Chinese social structure-- leaves enough room for the soft factors of moral values, ranked differentiation, relational distance, and egoistic manipulation of both the soft factors and the hard factors such as social institutions and the law. The conceptual tool makes it possible to comprehend and unpack the entanglement of hierarchy and mutuality, morality and instrumentality, sociality and egoism, and the personal and collective in social actions. Focusing on the moralization of hierarchy and egotism, this article explores the inner connections of the various components of the notion of chaxugeju and discusses the wider implications of this indigenous theoretical thesis