中国小说与人类理想--以歌德对《玉娇梨》的论述为引介

The Chinese Novel and the Human Ideal:An Introduction to Goethe's Discourse on Yu Jiao Li

本文通过歌德对以《玉娇梨》为代表的中国小说的认识,来切入其晚年对人类理想的思考。歌德一生精神凡三变,在1810年代后又因席勒之殇而进入第三期思想的再次升华阶段,此中受中国文化启迪不少,但这种文化关系的实质究竟如何,有待深入考察。歌德对中国文化(尤其是中国小说)当然谈不上全面的认知,可文化交流史轨迹的有趣恰恰在于,经由中介者(如传教士、翻译家、汉学家)的“加工转介”,使得本国文化场域中的知识精英有可能接触到最新的“文化资源”,也使这种“触媒”与“创造”有了可能。歌德思想的发展,自身的不断学习固然最为根本,但外来之“关键启迪”亦不可忽视。如此,这一个案性阅读史的考索,不仅牵涉文学史、交流史、文化史诸端,还上升到思想史的高层境界,即由中国小说而引发的关于人类理想的思考,在某种意义上也预告了歌德“世界文学”思想的发端。

This article,through his understanding of Chinese novels represented by Yu Jiao Li,attempts to examine Goethe.s thinking on human ideals in his later years. Goethe.s spirit changed for three times in all his life,and after the1810 s,due to the death of Schiller,he entered the third stage of sublimation of his thoughts,which was greatly inspired by Chinese culture,but the essence of this cultural relationship remains to be further investigated. For Chinese culture especially Chinese novels,Goethe has been far from the comprehensive cognition. But interestingly,the track of the history of cultural exchange precisely lies in the"processing"and"referral"of intermediaries(such as missionaries,translators,and sinologists),which makes it not only possible for the intellectual elites in the cultural field of the country to have access to the latest"cultural resources",but also makes"accelerant"and"creation"possible. Although Goethe.s own continuous learning is the most fundamental to the development of his thought,the"key enlightenment"from outside should not be ignored. Thus,the examination of this case based on reading history not only involves the history of literature,communication,and culture,but also rises to the high-level state of the history of thought,that is,the thinking about human ideals triggered by Chinese novels,which also predicts the beginning of Goethe.s"world literature"thought in a sense.