牡丹、牡丹谱与晚明亳州社会——以《亳州牡丹史》为中心

Peony,Anthography of Peony and Bozhou Society in the Late Ming Dynasty:On Bozhoumudanshi

晚明时期的亳州是牡丹种植与赏玩的中心,这一时期关于牡丹的集大成之作是薛凤翔的《亳州牡丹史》,略考书中人物约有54位,包含了焦竑、袁宏道等名士,也有不少园丁花户。因此,这本牡丹谱勾勒了晚明亳州的“牡丹交往圈”,从中可以发现牡丹在亳州社会起到了相当重要的粘合作用,它不仅维系了士人的关系网络,而且使得下层百姓也能与地方士人进行相应的交往活动。《亳州牡丹史》所体现的这种“社会史”价值也反映了当时士人的“阶层感”,他们需要通过具体的“物”去构筑与往昔先人的联系,由此保持这种文化资本带来的社交网络,同时需要通过撰写诸如《亳州牡丹史》这样的著述来与下层民众所“区隔”。在这一背景下,关于“自然之物”的花谱也就不那么“自然”了,它们其实是士人彰显“文化权力”的一种途径。

Bozhou was the centre of peony in the late Ming Dynasty,and the Bozhoumudanshi obviously was the masterpiece of Bozhou’s peony.There had 54 characters in this anthography,including some famous man,such as Jiao Hong,Yuan Hong-dao,and some nameless gardeners.Therefore,Bozhoumudanshi outlined the association circle of peony in Bozhou,and showed the important role of peony in local society.The peony not only maintained the social networks of scholar bureaucrat,but also promoted communication between different classes.This anthography also reflected a kind of sense of class,lower scholar needed some materials to construct the contact with the ancestors,and they also needed some anthography to strengthen the sense of class with lower people.So,the anthography wasn’t the record of natural knowledge,but a channel of manifest the cultural power.