走出历史认识论——改革开放四十年史学理论话语范式的局限与出路

Out of Historical Epistemology: The Limitation and Way Out of the Discourse Paradigm of Historiographical Theory in the 40 Years of Reform and Opening Up

改革开放四十年史学理论的主要范式是“历史认识论”,但它不仅不可能辩护历史知识合法性,而且是实证史学、史学理论与历史理论三者分裂的根源。以历史实在论为哲学前提的历史认识论根本上是一种近代西方哲学的镜式映像理论,它是历史相对主义真正的幕后推手,而不是拯救客观史学的唯一出路。在“历史认识论”范式下,史学理论只能反复在“历史认识是主观的还是客观的”这类问题中兜圈子,并将阐释学、后现代主义之类的新理论曲解为对历史认识主观性的“佐证”。实际上,现代科学的发展早已摧毁“客观自在真理”的近代科学图景,并促使哲学率先“走出认识论”,转型为现代哲学。所谓“走出历史认识论”并非否定客观历史(及客观世界)的实在性,也并不是否定认识现象,而是悬搁“客观历史实在”这个无效的形而上学信念,摆脱“自然的态度”,超越主客二元论的陈旧框架,从而将历史知识的“符合论客观性”转换为“融贯论客观性”。这既是建设中国特色史学话语的内在要求,也是真正把握马克思主义社会历史思想精髓的关键。

The main paradigm of historical theory in the 40 years of reform and opening up is“historical epistemology.”It is impossible to defend not only the legitimacy of historical knowledge but also the root of the division of positivist historiography,historiographical theory,and historical theory.Historical epistemology with historical realism as its philosophical premise is fundamentally a theory mirroring modern Western philosophy.It is the pusher behind historical relativism,rather than the only way to save objective historiography.Under the paradigm of“historical epistemology,”historiographical theory only repeats the question of whether“historical cognition is subjective or objective”and misinterprets new theories such as hermeneutics and postmodernism as“evidence”to the subjectivity of historical cognition.In fact,the development of modern science has already destroyed the modern scientific vision of“objective unrestrained truth,”influencing philosophy to take the lead by going“out of epistemology”and transforming into modern philosophy.Going,as it is called,“out of historical epistemology”does not deny the reality of objective history(and the objective world),nor does it deny the phenomenon of cognition.It suspends the ineffective metaphysical belief of“objective historical reality,”getting rid of the“natural attitude”and transcending the old framework of subject-object dualism,thus transforming the“objectivity of correspondence theory”in historical knowledge into“objectivity of coherence theory.”This is not only the inherent requirement of building a historiographical discourse with Chinese characteristics,but also the key to truly grasping the essence of Marxist social historical thought.