自“文以载道”至“性灵文学”——林语堂文学论述的学术史意义

From “Writings for Conveying Truth” to “Spiritual Literature”— Significance of Academic History of Literary Discourses of Lin Yutang

林语堂身处清末民初学术转型最为剧烈的时代,面对传统学术中"文以载道"的要求,他却背道而驰,深受周作人等影响,而大力提倡性灵、抒情文学,强调文学应是抒发个人情性的纯文学作品为上。因此,林语堂早期推崇晚明公安、竟陵派的文学主张与作品外,亦自清代学术中寻觅学术资源,进而推举金圣叹、袁枚等人的文学论述。另一方面,林语堂于后期写作生涯中,便强力批判传统文学受到道统观念的影响,进而失去文学自身活泼的多元、抒情与独立性。职是之故,林语堂于后期生命中,大加推举清代学术中的大将——戴震,并致力描绘、新诠孔子近于人情的面貌,其背后核心理念,正是欲打破历代道统的束缚,恢复孔子、文学本应有的原貌。综观林语堂的写作生涯,若自学术史的视域观之,恰为从倡议性灵文学,到打破道统,解放文学,恢复文学独立地位的历程。

Living in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, the era of the most dramatic academic transformations, Lin Yutang violated the requirement for ＂writings for conveying truth＂ in traditional academics. Signifi- candy affected by Zuoren Zhou, he strongly promoted spiritual and sentimental literature, emphasizing that literature should be pure literary work for expressing one＇s emotions. Therefore, in addition to praising highly the literary ideas and works of the Gong＇ an School and Jingling School in the late Ming Dynasty, Lin Yutang also sought academic resources in academia in the Qing Dynasty to further advocate the literary discourses of Shengtan Jin, Yuan Mei, etc. On the other hand, Lin Yutang＇s writings in his late years strongly criticized that traditional literature was affected by moral concepts and thus was deficient in the diversity, sentiment, and independence of literature itself. Lin Yutang strongly recommended Tai Chen, an elite scholar in academia in the Qing Dynasty in his late years, and was devoted to the new depiction and in- terpretation of Confucian ideas of being close to humanity. The core idea behind was to break the shackle of orthodoxy over the past dynasties and recover the original appearance of Confucianism and literature. The observation on Lin Yu- tang＇s writing career showed that it is a process from promotion of spiritual literature to the breakthrough of orthodoxy, liberation of literature, and recovery of independent status of literature.