1936年費孝通在吳江開弦弓村進行的江村調查及在此基礎上寫成的《江村經濟》一書,不僅實現了現代人類學對"文野之別"的歷史跨越,也切實推進了社會學、人類學及整個社會科學的中國化進程。事實上,無論是對"文野之別"的跨越,還是對社會科學中國化的推動,都與費孝通晚年倡導但青年時代即逐漸養成的"文化自覺"意識休戚相關:就前者而言,成功地實現對自己生存其間的文明社會的洞悉,既有賴于對與漢民族相對應的其他弱小民族的實地考察,更有賴于對來自西方的現代社會科學理論的把握,這兩者使得研究者能夠相對抽身于自己生存其間的文化,將自己熟悉的場景置于客體的位置;而就后者而言,正是因為研究者對自已的文化有自知之明,他才能夠自覺地站在主位立場,借用源自西方但研究者又深知其局限的理論,恰如其分地解釋自己的社會。換言之,文化自覺保證了研究者從事研究時"進得來"和"出得去",也賦予了他們在不同文化場景中相互切換,以"他山之石"雕琢中國之"玉"的學術潛能。

Fei’s research in Jiangcun Village has not only facilitated the historic transcendence over the civil-savage distinction in modern anthropology,but also advanced the sinicization of sociology,anthropology and social sciences in general.Both achievements are highly relevant to the"culture consciousness"that Fei developed at his early age and further advocated in his later years.In terms of the transcendence over the civil and the savage,Fei demonstrated an insight into the civilized society where he has lived,thanks to his study of ethnic minorities and his good command of modern social theories established by the western academia.These enabled him to detach from the culture of his own and locate familiar settings in the etic position.As for the sinicization of western social sciences,it was only possible because he well understood his own culture and took the emic stand to interpret his own society.Despite that he borrowed theories from the West,he was always well aware of their limitations.Culture consciousness developed by Fei endows researchers to switch between diverse cultural settings and contribute to Chinese research from western approaches.