“家”“国”与“满”“汉”——再论清帝逊位和1912年大妥协

“Home”,“Nation”,“Manchu”and “Han”: On the Abdication of the Qing Emperor and the Big Compromise in 1912

清帝逊位和1912年妥协是中国政治文化的一次剧变。这不仅在于完成从帝制到共和的转折,还在于,这场妥协在某种程度上更新了传统意义上的"改朝换代"。中国历来的政治文化中,鼎革是惨烈的,"君死社稷,臣死封疆,士死制"。"死",构成了一种政治规约。而1912年,在家国与种族的种种缠结当中,"坚守"丧失了合法性以及价值支撑,"妥协"则成为"奉天时""循尊养"的正当表达。妥协引导了一种平衡——皇亲、贵族、袁世凯,皆成为无负和平、齐赴共和的成员。西方世界的革命与现代转型大多循契约而成,这种由契约精神引领的妥协在中国传统政治中是鲜见的。因此,如果将妥协视为议会、宪政的一种基本原则,那么,辛亥年底的这场大妥协即具备了更为特殊的意义。革命,因种族之辨聚拢而成,却又在形成风暴之日迅速摆脱、超拔出这种单一的动员策略;进而,"家""国"与"满""汉"在平衡中达成和解。从反满到共和,撼动的不仅是帝制,还是随同帝制一起日渐消亡的政治与历史,它至少在形式上终结了帝制时代的政治文化,诠释并启航了中国政治的现代转型。

The abdication of the Qing Emperor and the Big Compromise in 1912 was a dramatic change in China's political culture,not only because it represents the transformation from a monarchy to a republic,but also because the compromise,to some extent,updated the 'shifts of dynasties'in the traditional sense. In China's political history,revolutions had been always cruel,in which'emperors died for the nation; officials died for the territory; literati died for the institutions'. 'Death'had become a political protocol. However,in1912,they decided to compromise: the emperor rather granted the nation to the common people than died for it; it was unnecessary for officials and literati to die for the emperor since they embraced the new institutions of the 'republic'. In various entanglements of home,nation and ethnical groups,the 'adhesion to the feudalism'lost its rationality and value foundation,while it was an appropriate choice to 'compromise'. Western revolutions and modern transitions were usually achieved in the spirit of contract. This kind of compromises guided by the contract spirit is rare in China's traditional politics. Therefore,if we regard the compromise as a principle of the parliament and constitutionalism,the Big Compromise in 1912 has more specific significance in the sense that it at least terminated formally the imperialistic politics and culture and initiated the modern transformation of China's politics.