林语堂红学研究的特点

The Characteristics of Lin Yu-tang's Hong Xue Study

林语堂的红学研究不是建立在资料考证的基础上,而是建立在他作为小说创作家敏锐的直觉上。林语堂红学研究的主要观点是:《红楼梦》的后40回不是高鹗的“伪续”,而是曹雪芹自己创作的;后40回具有与前80回同等的艺术价值。据新红学家的考证,《红楼梦》在距曹雪芹去世之前的八九年(乾隆二十一年)已完成了文本的前75回。林语堂认为,曹雪芹作为一个伟大的作家,有时间、有条件完成后40回,而由高鹗去代为完成是有悖常理的;从创作经验的层面看,创作是一个变动的过程,同一个作者创作的作品也可能出现文本矛盾的现象,更何况《红楼梦》经过了一个漫长的成书过程。所以,文本矛盾与否和著作权不是一一的对应关系,后40回与前80回的矛盾出入不能证明后40回一定出自他人之手。

Lin Yu-tangg research on Dream of the Red Chamber is not based on the foundation of material and textual criticism, but based on his intuition as novehst. Lin Yu-tangg main standpoints of the research on Dream of the Red Chamber are that the last 40 chapters of Dream of the Red Chamber are not written by Gao E, but written by Cao Xueqing himself; the last 40 chapters have the same value as the first 80 chapters. According to the scholars textual criticism, eight or nine years before Cao Xue-qin＇s death （21st year of Qianlong）, the first 75 chapters of the novel have been completed. Lin Yu-tang believes that Cao Xue-qin has enough time and conditions to complete the book. From the angle of the artistic experience, the process of composing changes constantly, it is possible that the novel written by the same author is full of contradictions. So Lin Yu-tang thinks that the contractions of the last 40 chapters cannot prove that the last 40 chapters of Dream of the Red Chamber are written by the others.