复杂而多义的“颓废”——19世纪西方文学中“颓废”内涵辨析

A Review of Decadence in the 19th Century Decadent Literature

西方作家与评论家对19世纪文学中"颓废"现象的诸种界定,以及对世纪末颓废派文学价值等问题的讨论,与当时主流话语体系对"颓废"内涵的粗浅解读与伦理化攻击形成鲜明对照,并在很大程度上决定了此后西方学者对颓废派文学核心话题的理解与建构。本文基于对诸多关于"颓废"内涵之评析的梳理与辨析,对19世纪西方文学中的"颓废"概念作出两点界定:首先,"颓废"指一种独特的美学选择,或者说是古老文明即将从成熟走向衰败之时的一种独特的文学模式;其次,关涉"退化"观念之"颓废"的美学选择,最终在文学创作层面带来了文学风格与文学主题的革新。

Starting from Romanticism period, western writers and critics in nineteenth century thought deeply upon the issue of Literary Decadence which played an increasingly important role in nineteenth-century western literature. Their definitions of the meaning of Decadence along with their discussions about the literary value of Decadent literature, which were on the opposite side of ethical misinterpretations and crude attacks from popular comments, played a leading role in certain degree in the understanding and interpretation of western scholars about nineteenth-century Decadent literature hereafter.