拿破仑“三戴绿头巾”——民国初期都市传播文化的女权与民主倾向

Napoleon Thrice Betrayed——Democracy, Femininity, and Print Culture in Early Republican China

自19世纪上半叶拿破仑生平事迹传入中国,伴随着法国革命的壮烈史诗和花都巴黎的浪漫传奇,不断激发国人的热情想象与政治效应。1910年代中期,在上海重又出现拿破仑传奇的传播热潮,遍及小说、画报、影戏和戏剧,却具"反英雄"的倾向,即对于拿氏的盖世武功与彪炳伟业兴趣缺缺,而专注其私人生活,对他的婚姻家庭与风流韵事津津乐道。这在民国初年情潮泛滥、政治幻灭的文化背景中,反映出多姿多彩的大众欲望与都市心态。在一些故事里拿破仑的智商比女子来得低,这迎合了当时伸张女权的思潮。另一方面由于袁世凯倒行逆施而引起民间抵制,藉暴露或丑化拿翁隐私曲折表达某种民主的意识与要求。民国初期这一都市传播颇富奇观的插曲,在全球文化价值迅速流通的今天,或许给历史与现实能带来某种观照与启示。

Since the late 19th century the legend of Napoleon spread in China, carrying with it the epic of French Revolution and images of romantic Paris, and always inspired patriotic passion and political imagination among Chinese audience. In the mid-1910s, widely portrayed by fiction, photography, film and drama, Napoleon aroused popular sensation again in Shanghai. No longer interested in his militant talent and imperial glory, the media were obsessed with his private life, all about his marriages and lovers. In the context of sentimental ethos and political disillusion in early Republican period, this anti-heroic proclivity refracted colorful urban mentality and popular desire. In a series of stories women were depicted as superior to Napoleon, signifying the rise of feminine consciousness at the time. On the other hand due to Yuan Shikai＇s dictatorship, the representations of a demonized Napoleon implied a democratic demand. This Napoleonic episode a hundred years ago will bring us new perspective on issues of media and politics in global China.