试论西方古典修辞术的政治特质

The Political Particularity of Western Classical Rhetoric

修辞术是西方的一门古老学问,而且是西方文化传统中一个重要的组成部分。当我们谈到西方修辞术时,常常将之拿来与我们通常所说的汉语修辞学相比较思考。实际上,如果不先深入认识西方修辞术的种种特质的话,任何轻易的比附只会带来模糊和混淆。回到西方修辞术的历史传统,我们发现政治性是其最本质的特质。只有认识了西方修辞术与政治之间的紧密联系,我们才可能真正认识西方修辞术。本文考察了西方古典修辞术从古希腊到古罗马的重要历史演变,试图理清西方古典修辞术与社会政治错综复杂的关系,并由此还原西方古典修辞术本质上的政治特质。

Rhetoric is a kind of the ancient knowledge in western history, and most important part of western cultural tradition. Whenever we talk about western rhetoric, we always like to compare it with the Chinese rhetoric. In fact, we would bring nothing but mistiness and confusion through any comparison unless we apprehend the particularities of western rhetoric. To truly apprehend the western rhetoric, we should get hold of the relation between rhetoric and politics, and appreciate the political particularity of western rhetoric. In this article, the author sorts out the complex relation of sociopolitical condition and the classical rhetoric in western, cultural history of ancient Greek and Roman, and takes the political particularity as the essential of western classical rhetoric.