近代中國無政府主義崛起於一九○○年代，民國成立之後並蔚為新文化及五四時期激進思潮的一脈主流勢力。本文的主旨即在於闡明無政府主義作為一種近代激進主義的結構性特質，並在現代情境的兩個基本面向的脈絡下，探討其崛起的原因、意涵及意義。本文的主要論旨是：近代中國無政府主義雖奠基於一種有關「自然秩序」的原始主義式信念之上──亦即：相信在國家的組織興起之前，人類社會的發展有一個人人自由、平等、獨立而社會和諧的「原人」時代──但它乃是道地的現代情境下的歷史產物；它既是對傳統社會政治秩序解體的回應，也是對近代西方資本工業文明之擴張的回應。本文認為，無政府主義所回應的這兩方面的問題，相當關鍵地界定了中國所遭逢的現代情境的基本樣態。惟其如此，無政府主義遂得以吸引大批的信徒，同時也藉由它對社會革命理念、理想的持續論述，而為日後共產主義的興起發揮了積極助援的作用。然而由於近代西方資本工業文明之擴張，乃是以帝國主義軍政勢力入侵的形式對中國造成威脅，因此營建國族的民族主義政治目標，自始即是內蘊於此一情境的一個重大問題環節，但無政府主義者對之卻是無力回應的。此一無力回應的事實，不僅使得無政府主義漸失言論市場上的競逐力，同時它所導致無政府主義者的虛空、焦慮之感，亦為共產主義的興起發揮了一定的消極助援作用。

This paper explores Chinese anarchism as a strain of modern radicalism, in the context of the modern condition that began to emerge around the turn of the twentieth century. An overview of the anarchist groups and their fundamental ideas and beliefs is provided, followed by a discussion on the appearance of Chinese anarchism, as well as its implications and significance, against two contemporary backgrounds that characterized the emergent modern condition confronted by China: the disintegration of traditional Chinese sociopolitical order, and the expansion and intrusion of the capitalist-industrial order stemming from the West. The paper argues that anarchism owed much of its appeal to the answers its Chinese believers were able to produce in response to these imminent historical developments. However, since the expansion of the capitalist-industrial order on the Chinese soil took the form of military-political imperialist intrusion, the goals of nation-and state-building became imperative and integral to the modern condition faced by China, whereas the anarchists were prevented by their anti-statist and anti-political premises to produce an adequate response. As a result, the anarchists were gradually marginalized in the 1920s, even although they had exerted, by way of propagating the idea/ideal of social revolution, a dynamic asisting force in the rise of Chinese communism.