封闭的开放:泰戈尔1924年访华的遭遇

Closed Openness:A Study on Tagore's Visit to China in 1924

在比较文学的意义上,可以把泰戈尔访华所引起的跨文化对话和争辩看成一种难得的外部投射,从中透视当时的本土文化语境,并进一步阐明其中的困境,以及由此导致的文化实践的偏颇。针对当时文化语境的偏向,泰戈尔呼吁国人在保守自身传统的基础上调和东西方文明。然而,由于中西二元对立的比较逻辑影响深远,科玄之争后中国知识界的分裂,报刊的不确报道,以及普遍存在的种族观念,泰戈尔的演说几乎没有得到中国知识界的理解,他关于中国文化的判定也没有引起足够的重视。有关泰戈尔的沸沸扬扬的争论,很大程度上不过是自说自话;在表面的开放之下,多数知识分子其实固守定见。难得的文化交流沦为了封闭的开放,中国文化实践也错失了一次纠偏的良机。

In the view of comparative literature,Tagore's visit to China in 1924 gives us a perspective on Chinese cultural context at the time,its predicament and the resulting deflection of cultural practice.Tagore appeal to Chinese to unite eastern and western civilization on the basis of conserving Chinese tradition in order to balance cultural context of the time.However,on account of the dichotomy of the East and the West,the abruption of Chinese intelligentsia after the argument on science and metaphysics,the garbled newspaper reports and the prevailing racism,Tagore's speeches were hardly understood by Chinese intellectuals and his judgement on Chinese tradition did not attract enough attention eigher.The heated disputes about Tagore were to some degree saying to themselves;most intellectuals insisted on own opinions under the seeming openness.The precious cultural exchange degenerated into closed openness;meanwhile,Chinese cultural practice lost an opportunity to regain balance.