论吴刚与西西福斯神话文化背景的异同

Wu Gang and Sisyphus:Differences and Similarities in the Cultural Background of Their Myths

中国古代神话中伐桂的吴刚和西方古希腊神话中推石的西西福斯,其二人的遭遇反映在宿命上是一致的:无用无望的劳动是人类自身的悲剧.二者在各自神话源起的文化背景上,又互见差异.吴刚是奴隶社会的产物,西西福斯则是氏族社会的产物;吴刚伐桂是有意义的,它折射了中国渔樵耕读的文化心态,西西福斯推石是无意义的,其中渗透着一种命运莫测的神秘主义因素,反映了古希腊人在理想与现实的冲突中产生的妥协意识倾向;与西西福斯相比,吴刚的形象充满着浪漫主义因素,为感性、想象的产物;西西福斯则是现实主义的,他是理性抽象的产物.

Wu Gang and Sisyphus were two characters in ancient Chinese and Greek myths. One lopped the laurel in the moon, and the other one pushed the stone. They both represented the same tragic foreordination of human beings themselves. However, they were different in their cultural background of myth genesis. Wu Gang was born in slave society while Sisyphus was born in clanship. The movement of Wu Gang lopping laurel made sense; and he represented the psychology of Chinese culture. In contrast, it was insignificant for Sisyphus to push the stone and he represented some mystic factors, and the Greek people＇s compromise awareness between the conflicts of ideal life and reality. Wu Gang＇s image was filled of romantic spirit, and he was the outcome of sensibility and imagination, but the image of Sisyphus was the reality, and he was the result of logos and abstract.