何以“边”为:巴特“族群边界”理论的启迪

Barth's Ethnic Boundary and the Understanding of Frontier in Chinese Context

挪威人类学家巴特的族群理论对国际社会科学的相关领域之影响历久不衰。在巴特看来,族群边界(ethnic boundary)是不同群体在互动过程中体现出来的,这一视角对于理解边疆具有重要意义。边疆在中国学界之所以为重要课题,乃因其与主权相关。然而,这仅仅是边疆的一个方面。边疆的概念早在主权观念出现之前就已存在。因此,对边疆的理解无法忽视不同文化或者族群之间互动的因素,边疆因此是为"接触区域"。当今,作为接触区域的边疆,互动的主体已经从不同文化与族群转移到国家之间上来,但是,次国家主体互动依然存在。这类互动良莠混杂,但是可以确定的是,如果有关国家在所谓边疆关注主权超乎民生,那就必定导致次国家主体互动日益走向消极面。巴特对我们理解边疆的意义就在于,揭示了不同主体之间的边界(boundary)的流动性。这种流动性是因为主体之间互动的后果。因此,从巴特的视角来理解边疆,可以让我们领略这个概念所固有的张力,及其在现实中的紧张。

Fredrik Barth＇s theory of ethnicity addresses points as ethnic boundary taking place when different groups of people encounter. To our understanding of frontier（“边疆”） Barth＇s angle is relevant. The reason that frontier concerns Chinese academia is due to a fact that sovereignty concerns Chinese leaderships. However, in China, the concept of frontier has a much longer history than that of sovereignty. Accordingly, it is impossible to understand frontier without consideration of interactions among different groups of people; Frontier therefore should be understood as a contact zoon. Barth＇s theory helps us to comprehend frontier as a zoon, in which different groups of people come across so boundaries are mobilized, maintained, and changed. This situation means that tensions are internalized in the notion of frontier in a particular Chinese context and that, in a zoon as such, people＇s livelihood should concern the state in the first place.