Bernard Williams is one of the most important sources of contemporary realist political theory。current，Academic interpretation of him mainly focuses on his criticism of liberal political philosophy，especially legitimacy、Equality, freedom and other important political issues。However，Most of Williams' life work was focused on the field of moral philosophy，And how his work in moral philosophy influenced his political thought，bet365 bonus bets gets little attention。Admittedly，One of the main focuses of his criticism of political liberalism is its moralism，That is, moral philosophy with political philosophy as its application。But as Hawthorne, editor of Williams' collection of political essays "In the Beginning Was the Deed" said，His work in moral philosophy has clear applications to his political philosophy。

However，Clear but does not mean direct。Williams does not regard ethics as a self-sufficient field，The relationship between ethics and politics is by no means a one-dimensional influence: bet365 bonus bets thoughts do affect politics，But it is also a result of modern conditions as much as politics。The issue of modernity occupies a prominent position in Williams' bet365 bonus bets thought，His most concentrated discussion of this is the article "Modernity and the Substance of bet365 bonus bets Life"。The concept of “bet365 bonus bets substance”, which is both normative and descriptive, is a useful clue to grasp its thinking: on the one hand，The various conditions of modernity have brought new social and political "entities" to bet365 bonus bets life and thought；On the other hand，Some ways of understanding bet365 bonus bets life，Or failure to accurately grasp the challenges of modernity，Or simply fail to grasp this challenge，Thus ultimately failing to provide the "foundation" for thought。The negative side of Williams's thinking is the criticism of various characterizations of modernity and bet365 bonus bets thought，The positive side only provides a limited elucidation of the normative meaning suggested by negative criticism。This highly restrained strategy rather than the specific claims within it，This is what is truly unique about Williams。

Williams’s investigation begins with a typically unfounded bet365 bonus bets thought，He calls it "bet365 bonus bets nostalgia": longing for a perfect and coordinated bet365 bonus bets state in the past，Criticize the corruption of the current moral state。The most noteworthy bet365 bonus bets nostalgia is bet365 bonus bets nostalgia as a historical claim，Considering that modernity represents a unique social category。It is not an isolated claim，It is a position that may be held by political philosophies ranging from conservative to radical。Actually，It did widely influence the political philosophy of the 20th century。Williams mainly focuses on history to give a criticism。The significance of history lies first in，bet365 bonus bets nostalgia is precisely a non-historical way of understanding history，bet365 bonus bets nostalgia itself is also a historically repeated phenomenon。The decline of traditional authority and secularization are recognized signs of modernity，And complaints about these two are just the most common forms of traditional bet365 bonus bets nostalgia。If the bet365 bonus bets nostalgia for modernity is just a criticism in repeating the existing bet365 bonus bets nostalgia，Then even if the former is right about the characteristics of the modern world，The effectiveness of this kind of criticism will also be greatly reduced。

Williams’ criticism focuses on history，But not staying in history，Rather, bet365 bonus bets nostalgia is used as a signpost to depict the relationship between ethics and the modern world。The problem with bet365 bonus bets nostalgia is that it confuses the problem and its solution: an inability to accept the unfamiliar and a judgment that the bet365 bonus bets situation is not what it used to be，The two themselves are two sides of the same position。If the understanding of the past is only a projection of the current bet365 bonus bets situation，Then it is difficult to understand the relationship between bet365 bonus bets thought and the modern world anyway。Getting rid of this bet365 bonus bets nostalgia requires avoiding preconceptions about the substantive way of portraying the historical situation of modernity。Williams’s suggestion for this characterization is: “When thinking about the relationship between bet365 bonus bets thought and the modern world，Always start with some concepts like this，These concepts by themselves contain only minimal bet365 bonus bets commitments。”

According to Williams，The expansion of publicity is a basic feature of modernity。bet365 bonus bets decisions in the modern world are increasingly made by public institutions based on promulgated rules and regulations。The changes this change brings to bet365 bonus bets life are，bet365 bonus bets arguments are strongly institutionalized。To a large extent，The need for bet365 bonus bets theory is because "the institution must be accountable to the public，Decisions on great human issues must be made at the most personal level"。The expansion of the public nature of bet365 bonus bets decisions and arguments brings about the strengthening of their political nature，Because "if certain issues increasingly become public and openly regulated issues，Then they appear to be appropriate concerns for politics”。

Another aspect of the expansion of bet365 bonus bets publicity is，Although politics at the national level remain of primary importance，But many important bet365 bonus bets issues cannot be resolved at the level of a single country，The influence of multinational companies is even greater。The expansion of publicity brings political strengthening to ethics，The role of the state in setting the bet365 bonus bets agenda of society is weakening。Williams believes that these two are real problems in bet365 bonus bets thought in modern times: publicity means preference is more general、More procedural bet365 bonus bets concepts，But a platform to carry this kind of publicity needs to find another place。

The limits of bet365 bonus bets theory constitute a reference for Williams to think about the modern situation of bet365 bonus bets thought。He thinks，bet365 bonus bets theory is neither equal to bet365 bonus bets thought，Not an example of bet365 bonus bets thinking，Aims to give "some general test" by systematizing and reducing bet365 bonus bets concepts，Can be used to determine whether basic bet365 bonus bets beliefs and principles are correct”。This systematization implies a preference for thinner concepts，For example, reducing a more descriptive concept such as "cruelty" to a more abstract concept such as "good" and "bad"。Williams pointed out，Although the theory’s reductive claims are not a requirement of rationality，But it is precisely a reflection of the bet365 bonus bets situation of modernity itself: managing ethically sensitive matters，A more suitable language is abstract and general、Language for a diverse public。Williams thus pointed out the basic difficulty caused by the modern situation of bet365 bonus bets thought: feasible personal ethics requires a certain degree of realistic basis，Public moral issues require a considerable degree of generality。

Rather than saying that Williams gave some kind of answer，It is better to say that he gave the direction to find this solution；This direction is not so much based on philosophy，It is better to say that it is based on politics。Modernity not only means that originally private bet365 bonus bets decisions have become public and more political，It also means that the state does not serve as the only political subject and gives the final verdict on bet365 bonus bets issues。Real political entities are composed of various "bet365 bonus bets constituencies"。bet365 bonus bets thought itself contains thicker and thinner layers，This means that bet365 bonus bets ideas can be addressed to a wide range of audiences。bet365 bonus bets thinking does need to face the requirements of public justification as much as possible，But it does not need to first target the most general publicity。bet365 bonus bets thought is an idea that is “guided by the world and guides action”，The first response is the experience of bet365 bonus bets voters，Only seek general defense when you need to assume more general management functions。The way Williams arranged it meant that the requirement for a public defense still existed，But the way it is required to appear is more flexible: public defense is necessary，But more localized practical concerns take precedence。Of course，If one thinks that the priority of local concerns implies the homogeneity of an bet365 bonus bets community without having to respond to general public justification，So this is back to the track of bet365 bonus bets nostalgia。

Williams thinks，Philosophy is about “optimally understanding our lives、Intellectual activities、Part of that effort to “find yourself in a situation”。The reality of his discussion，It lies in understanding specific issues from different aspects of modernity and bet365 bonus bets life，Rather than treating it as a homogeneous whole。This is why Williams, when discussing the portrayal of modernity, emphasized that this portrayal needs to be "approved by people with different bet365 bonus bets attitudes towards the world within a certain range"。It can be said，Reflective historical awareness and sensitivity to the complexity of reality，Is the key to understanding ethics politically and to understanding the political challenge of ethics itself。

In a more general sense，Understanding this aspect of Williams not only helps us better understand the integrity of Williams’ thought，It also has important reference significance for understanding the Chinese ideological tradition: although the Chinese ideological tradition has deep and strong bet365 bonus bets and political concerns，But it still poses a difficult challenge in understanding the connection between tradition and modernity。If Williams’ views on bet365 bonus bets grounds have merit，On the one hand, then, we do not need and cannot expect a general theory that can provide guidance on this bet365 bonus bets dilemma，On the other hand, we have no reason to think that modernity poses a holistic challenge。The complexity of tradition and the modern world，Itself provides a possibility for these challenges to eliminate each other。

　　(Author’s unit: School of Humanities, Xi’an University of Electronic Science and Technology；Department of Philosophy, University of Basel, Switzerland)