强势君主与社会契约:晚清中译本对卢梭理论的改造

An Extraordinary Monarch and the Social Contract:A Late Qing Chinese Translation’s Recreation of Rousseau’s Theory

杨廷栋1902年出版《路索民约论》,在历史上第一次用汉文完整表述了四卷本《社会契约论》的主要内容。此书跟随卢梭原文分为四编。第一编最为激烈,指出革命不仅正义,而且对一个腐败国度的重生不可或缺;可是,从第二编起表面上便很少肯定革命,反而强调只有强有力的政府才能为开创自由平等的社会创造条件。不仅如此,杨廷栋还一再指出这样的政府应该由一位强势的君主所领导。他所描述的不是传统帝王,也不是立宪君主,而是马基雅维利式的"新君主"。根据卢梭和意大利共产党人葛兰西的诠释,马基雅维利的"新君主"其实代表一种革命的力量,它通过疾风暴雨式的行动为国家开创长治久安。杨廷栋"凭空创造"的强势君主也许并不意味着他转向保守,反而意味着他对革命政党及其创建的新国家的肯定。

Yang Tingdong(1879-1950)published the first complete Chinese version of Rousseau’s Of the Social Contract in 1902.Yang is most radical in the first book.He argues that revolution is just and necessary to rejuvenate a corrupt state.Yet,since Book II,he seldom mentions revolution in a positive way and instead emphasizes more the indispensable role of a strong government in creating conditions for a genuine free and equal society,launching a constitutional reform and saving the state from declining and perishing.To make the topic more controversial,Yang repeatedly points out that such a strong government should be created and led by an extraordinary monarch.What he describes is neither a traditional king nor constitutional monarch,but a new prince of Machiavelli as interpreted by Rousseau and Gramsci,who serves as a revolutionary force and prepares for the critical legislation that leads to the rule of law.Indeed,Yang’s powerful monarch may not mean a conservative turn,but symbolize a revolutionary party and the state it creates.