晚清民国英文报刊之中国戏剧形象的构建——以《北华捷报》(1850—1941)为例

The Changing Images of Chinese Theatre Constructed in The North-China Herald(1850-1941)

文章聚焦晚清民国时期上海最具影响力的英文外报《北华捷报》对中国戏剧的报道与评价。20世纪以前,该报构建的中国戏剧形象带有明显的东方学色彩。二十世纪二三十年代,梁社乾等华人主动对外传播中国戏剧文化,在“他者”霸权独语的声音中加入纠偏式的“自我”代言,形成双声复调和多元声音的格局,建构了更为客观、真实的中国戏剧形象。从否定中国戏剧具有自主生发能力到对“中国剧”《王宝川》的热捧,从偏执于中国戏剧效仿西方写实布景才是进步,到欣赏它的假定性美学并建议它回归艺术“原点”,《北华捷报》对中国戏剧形象的构建与当时的戏剧生态及艺术事件同频共振,这也是它追求真实与时效表述的外在表现。

This paper mainly explores the coverage and the comments of the traditional Chinese theatre in The North-China Herald(1850-1941),a most influential English newspaper in Shanghai since its founding.The newspaper's orientalist and hegemonic narrative of Chinese theatre in the 19th century have shifted into dialogues,polyphony and diverse expressions with the counterbalanced voices from such Chinese scholars as George Kin Leung and others around the 1920-1930,thus constructing a more objective and truthful images of Chinese theatre.From totally denying Chinese theatre art to enthusiastically embracing it in the performance of"Lady Precious Stream",from insisting Chinese theatre follow the lead of Western realistic theatre to appreciate its make-believed art and further proposing it remain to its own original fine art,the changing images of Chinese theatre in The North-China Herald has a direct correlation with the social contexts,theatre trends and artistic filed in China and the world as well.It is also an outward expression of the newspaper's pursuit of truthful and timely representation as its mission.