近世日本“中华”概念的异化

The Alienation of Concept of “Zhonghua” in the Early Modern Japan

汉字"中华"一词在当代日本有着与中国很不相同的意涵。这种差异是在日本近世时期出现的。之前,日本知识界曾以"中华"自诩,对中国文化有着深深的仰慕和认同。近世思想家却狂热地抬高本土文化的地位,持续地将对"中华"的认同和褒扬向着异化和贬损的方向扭转。但做到这一点需要一个过程。山鹿素行以与中国争夺"中华"的荣耀并与中国对抗为己任,"私意论"者和徂徕学派也通过各自的论证表明日本乃原本"中华"的代表,而比早已退去"中华"本色的中国更有文明优势;国学者则进了一步,径直利用本土神道资源贬斥"中华"概念,将之视为"中国人的自尊之辞";而兰学者则根据近代西方知识体系,有意地构建起对中国文化的对抗机制,将"中华"一词的含义解释为中国人的妄自尊大。随着近代神(皇)国思想和洋学思想的盛行,这种理解成为日本语境中通行的意涵。至此,近世思想家似乎撇清了自己与"中华"一词的干系,使它最终异化成了专门指称他者中国的概念。不过,洋学者把日本自诩为"文明开化",把"中华"打入"野蛮愚昧"的做法,最终无法表明真正逃脱了华夷观念之末流的命运。透过"中华"含义的这场异变,不仅可以看清近世日本文化主体意识是如何畸形崛起的,更可以体会到近代日本国族意识是怎样膨胀并最终导致东亚国际关系发生历史性异动的内在根据。

In contemporary Japan,the meaning of Chinese word "Zhonghua"(中华)is very different from the one in China.This difference occurred in the early modern Japan.Before,the Japanese intellectuals prided Japan on "Zhonghua"and had deep admiration and recognition for Chinese culture.However,during the early modern period,the Japanese intellectuals enthusiastically elevatekt the subjectivity of Japanese culture,and continuously reversed the recognition and praise of "Zhonghua"towards alienation and derogation.But achieving this required a process.Yamaga Soko (山鹿素行),the Sorai School(徂徕学派)and the holders of "sages 'own ideas"theory ("私意论"者)couldn't deconstruct the Chinese cultural centralism.Meanwhile,the scholars of Kokugaku (国学者)and the scholars of Western (Dutch)learning (兰学者)built the opposition system to Chinese culture by utilizing the Japanese Shinto and Western knowledge,and reinterpreted the meaning of the word "Zhonghua"as Chinese arrogance.With the prevailing of the Shinkoku thought (神国思想)and the Western learning,this definition has become a common concept in Japanese context.So far,the intellectuals finally disassociated themselves from "Zhonghua"and eventually alienated it into a special reference to China as the others.Through the alienation of "Zhonghua',we can not only see how the consciousness of the subjectivity of Japanese culture rose in the early modern era,but also how the modernJapanese national spirit expanded and eventually led to the historical changes in international relations in East Asia.