归有光寿序经典地位的确立及其文学史意义

The Canonization of Gui Youguang’s Shouxu and Its Significance in Literary History

清代文坛名流对寿序虽有贬抑和推尊之别,但都显现出祛除积弊的强烈意愿,最终在标举归有光寿序上达成了一定程度的共识。他们既从中总结出足资借鉴的写作手法,特别是叙事的简练与真实以及时时运用议论和白描等,又将其化用到在自身创作实践中。以此为前提,清人将其当作衡量同类文体写作水平的准绳,同时借助选本的力量进一步确认了其经典地位。归氏寿序经典地位的形成具有丰富的文章学内涵和文学史意义。其地位的提升与其古文声誉的走高相同步,反过来又促成了后者地位的巩固。清人通过对归氏寿序与古文相通之处的推扬与趋从,将寿序从大众文化心理与世俗趣味的载体,部分转变为抒发士大夫情志与学识的工具。寿序也从为人所轻的应酬文体,成功跻身古文的行列之中。

Although there were mixed views on the shouxu genre among literary celebrities in the Qing dynasty, all of them showed a strong will to eliminate the drawbacks within the shouxu genre and ended up with certain degree of consensus on Gui Youguang’s shouxu as the paragon. They not only summarized with an appreciation Gui’s creative techniques and writing styles characterized by simplicity, straightforwardness, and authenticity, but also developed these features in their own creative practices. The Qing intellectuals regarded Gui’s writing as the criterion for measuring works of similar genres and reaffirmed its canonical status through anthologizations. The canonization of Gui Youguang’s shouxu was significant in literary history, which further reinforced the status of his classical prose writings. By revealing and promoting the similarities between Gui Youguang’s shouxu and his prose, writers of the Qing dynasty transformed to some extent the shouxu genre from an embodiment of popular cultural psychology and secular interests to an instrument for the scholar bureaucrats to express their emotions and thoughts. As a result, the shouxu genre successfully evolved from a genre for entertainment unfavored by intellectuals into an esteemed genre of prose.