试论近代日本艺妓的凋落

The Decline of Modern Japanese Geisha Culture

日本近代艺妓的变迁史,可视为日本现代化或西洋化的一张典型缩略图。艺妓曾经是"文明之花"、崭新的"美"之创造者,但随着西洋伦理思想的大举渗透,以及日本近代社会结构的剧烈变动,江户时代以来的"色道"空间遭解体,艺妓之"美"被解构,艺妓成为出卖"贞操""纯洁",并引发"家庭"崩溃和国家危机的双重意义上的"不道德者"。文明开化背景之下的"美人"形态的多样化发展以及新型"咖啡店文化"的崛起,也令艺妓沦为时代的落伍者。另外,战争时期限制奢侈性消费的措施,进一步挤压了艺妓的生存空间。艺妓从鼎盛走向凋落的历程,是西洋文明大举东进,日本传统文化无力抵御的一种最真实写照。

The history of Japan ＇s modern Geisha can be regarded as a typical of Japanese modern or western thumbnails. The Geisha was once known as the ＂Flower of civilization＂,and the creator of the new ＂beauty＂. However, with the aggressive penetration of western ethics and the dramatic changes of Japanese modern social structure, ＂Shikido ＂ space broke up during the Edo period and Geisha was decried as ＂immorality＂ which betrayed ＂chastity ＂ and ＂purity ＂ and led to the family collapse and national crisis.Besides, the diversification of ＂beauty ＂ forms in the new civilized background and the rise of new type of ＂coffee culture＂ turned the geisha into the representative laggards of the era. What＇s more, measures such as restrictions on luxury consumption in periods of war squeezed the survival space of the geisha. The experience of the Geisha is a true portrayal of the frustration of Japanese traditional culture in time of Western penetration.