在妈祖的庇佑下:女性家族史与民间信仰——以陈玉慧的《海神家族》为中心

Under the Aegis of Matsu:A Family History of Women and the Folk Belief,with A Family Clan of Sea Gods by Jade Y.Chen as the Centre

陈玉慧的长篇小说《海神家族》将以女性为主线贯穿而成的台湾家族故事与民间信仰交织起来。本文以此为主要讨论对象,研究无父家庭的主流历史中,从女性角度写就的阴性历史如何伴随妈祖传说而展开,彼此如何成就,历史与民间信仰的关系怎样被呈现,离散有何依归等等问题。在以女性命运和民俗风习为主要内容的当代台湾小说系谱中,萧丽红《千江有水千江月》,蔡素芬的《盐田儿女》系列,陈淑瑶晚近之《流水账》已开启先声。《海神家族》与它们的关联同其独特之处又在何处?这也同样是本文试图在此一文本系统内对比研究的。

A Family Clan of Sea Gods, by Jade Y. Chen, is a novel that weaves the story of a Taiwan Residents family clan with folk belief, with women as a main thread. This article treats the novel as a main subject for discussion, looking at how the feminine history, written from a female angel, in the mainstream history of fatherless families, is expanded along with the Matsu legend, how they accomplish each other and how the relationship between history and folk belief is represented and if there is any return after the dispersal. The genealogy of contemporary Taiwan Residents fiction, centred upon the fate of women and folkloric customs, has already been opened up with A Thousand Moons on a Thousand Rivers by Hsiao Li-hung, People in Salt Pans by Su-fen Tsai and, more recently, A Flowing Account by Chen Shu Yao. What＇ s the difference of A Family Clan of Sea Gods from them and what is it that is unique about it, too？ Which is also something this article will explore through comparisons.