中西美学视野中的言意观——以庄子和符号学为例

The Language-Meaning View in the Vision of Sino-Western Aesthetics——Taking Zhuangzi and symbol theory as example

言意问题是中西美学关注的主要问题。在中国 ,先秦时期的庄子以“道”为基础 ,提出了“言不尽意”及“得意忘言”的观点。在西方 ,以索绪尔为代表的结构主义符号学则认为在符号的世界里 ,语言的意义是可以确定的 ,能指和所指是相对的 ,有能指必有所指。而以德里达为代表的后结构主义则提出能指和所指并不是一一对应的 ,语言的传达始终是充满差异、流动和多义的。这种发现恰与庄子的观点有相似之处 ,但应看到 ,二者由于文化传统和美学观念的不同 ,其内在理路并不一致。

The language-meaning question is an important one noted by Sino-Western aesthetic workers. In the period before Qin dynasty of China, Zhuangzi by taking 'dao (the principle)' as foundation put forward the view of 'Saying does not convey all on the mind' and 'understanding without words'. In Western, the structuralism symbol theory represented by Saussure holds that in the symbol world, the meaning of language can be defined, what can point out and what is pointed out are corresponded; where there is being able to point, there must be what being pointed out. While the post-structuralism represented by Deledda puts forward that what can be pointed out and what is pointed out are not corresponded one by one. In what the language conveys are full of difference, flow and multi-meaning. Such discover is just similar to that of Zhuangzi. But it should be seen that owing to the cultural tradition and aesthetic views of the two are different, their internal idea ways are not in accordance with each other.