历史研究为什么需要“理论”？——与青年学生谈治学

Why Does Historical Research Require “Theory”?——A talk with young students about academic research

“理论”在近几十年成为史学界谈虎色变的一个话题,在有些人那里甚至被视为瘟疫,避之唯恐不及,这与乾嘉学派的深远影响与20世纪时事变迁高度相关。民国时代,学术界就存在着“新汉学”与“新史学”两种治史路径的对抗。轻视理论的倾向,与不能正确认识理论在历史研究中的地位与职能有关。历史研究有两大任务,一是发现和清理事实,二是说明和解释事实。而任何对事实的解释和说明,必须依托理论,甚至某些重要事实的发现和清理本身也离不开理论。历史研究离不开理论,如同历史研究离不开史料一样。健康的史学界必须在“史料”与“史观”之间保持必要的平衡。

In the field of historical research,“theory”has become a sensitive topic in Chinese academia in the past few decades,and some people even take it as a plague and believe it has no place in historical study.This is in large part due to the far-reaching influence of the Qianjia school of thought dating back to the Qing Dynasty and the social changes in the 20^th century.Since the era of the Republic of China,there has been a confrontation between the two paths of“New Sinology”and“New Historiography”.The tendency to look down on theory is connected with the inability to correctly understand the attributes and functions of theory in historical research.Historical research has two main tasks:to discover and clarify facts;to illustrate and explain facts.Yet any illustration and explanation must rely on theory,and even some discovery and clarification of certain important facts also require theory.As it cannot be separated from historical material,historical research cannot do without theory either.Sound historical research must keep a balance between historical material and historiographical concepts.