《易传》德性论中的“自然主义”问题探究

On the“Naturalism”in the Theory of Virtue Elaborated in the Yizhuan

"存在"和"应该"如何统一是西方伦理学的一个重要问题,此问题所引发的困境在中国哲学语境中亦存在。在《易传》中,道德上的"应该"常常以自然中的实存(尤其是"天")为依据。这种模式使《易传》的德性论陷入了"自然主义"伦理学的困境,但道德命题并不是纯然的分析命题,道德实践也不是简单的逻辑演绎。不同于西方的是,古代中国人在道德实践的过程中综合进了深刻的忧患意识和道德自觉,这使其在道德起源论的形式上更加丰富、更具人文色彩。也正是这些外在因素的契入,使《易传》的德性论模式反而具有了不同于西方他律主义或自然主义的独特内涵。

How to unify ＂existence＂ and ＂ought to＂ is an important issue in Western ethics, the dilemma caused by which also existsin the context of Chinese philosophy. In the Yizhuan （ Commentaries on the Changesl , what one ought to do in the sense of virtue isusually based on real existence （particularly the ＂heaven＂ I. This mode makes the virtue theory of the Yizhuan lap into the predicament of the ＂naturalistic＂ ethics. But neither the proposition related to virtues can be purely analyzed nor the moral practice can belogically deduced. Different from Westerners, ancient Chinese people planted awareness of potential danger and moralinto moral practice, which makes its theory of moral origination more abundant and more humanistic. It is this transplanting of externalfactors that endows the virtue theory of the Yizhuan with unique connotations different from Western heteronomy or naturalism.