文学论争与沈从文的“自我经典化”——兼及“京海之争”与“反差不多”论争的重审

Literary debate and Shen Congwen’s “self-classicization”: On the retrial of the “Jinghai dispute” and the “anti-almost-the-same” debate

1930年代,沈从文先后发起了“京海之争”“反差不多”等一系列文学论争。当我们重返论争所发生的历史现场,将两次论争结合起来进行整体考察,可以发现:“京海之争”并非“京派”与“海派”这两大文学流派之间的正面交锋,而是由沈从文独自代表北方作家群体(京派),与居于上海的作家群体(主要是左翼作家)展开的一场关于政治、商业与文学之间关系的大讨论;“京海之争”的真正肇始也不是沈从文的《文学者的态度》一文,而是他的另一篇文章《论“海派”》;同时,沈从文发起“反差不多”论争的真正意图与“京海之争”一脉相承,都是旨在通过批判文坛普遍存在的“差不多”现象,凸显以自己为代表的“京派”文学之独特价值。藉由系列文学论争,“京派”这一“作家群体”正式浮出历史地表,而沈从文作为后期“京派”文学的代言人,其创作观念和文学理想也日益凸显,并逐步在整个中国现代文坛产生了广泛而深刻的影响。文学论争显然是沈从文主动选择的一种“自我经典化”的媒介策略,无论是在“京海之争”中强烈批判“海派”作家“玩票白相”的创作态度和“商业竞卖”的恶劣风气,还是在“反差不多”论争中激烈指责以左翼文学阵营为代表的公式化、概念化创作倾向,其背后潜藏的都是沈从文强烈的“自我经典化”意识,他实际上是想要借助群体的力量,让自己代表和引领的自由主义文学理念脱颖而出,以完成在中国现代文学场中的站位,进而为自己念兹在兹的“伟大中国文学作品”指明创作方向。

In the 1930s,Shen Congwen initiated a series of literary debates,including the“Jinghai dispute”and“anti-almost-the-same”.When we return to the historical scene where the controversy occurred and examine the two debates as a whole,we can find that the“Jinghai dispute”is not a direct confrontation between the two major literary schools,the“Beijing School”and the“Shanghai School”.Instead,Shen Congwen alone represents the northern writer group(the Beijing School)and launches a major discussion on the relationship between politics,business and literature with the writer group(mainly left-wing writers)residing in Shanghai.The true beginning of the“Jinghai dispute”was not Shen Congwen’s article“The Attitude of Literature”,but his another article“On the Shanghai School”.At the same time,Shen Congwen’s true intention to initiate“anti-almost-the-same”debate is in line with“Jinghai dispute”,aiming to highlight the unique value of the“Beijing School”literature by criticizing the widespread“almost-the-same”phenomenon in the literary world.Through a series of literary debates,“Beijing School”as a group of writers has officially emerged from the historical surface.As the spokesperson for the later“Beijing School”literature,Shen Congwen’s creative concepts and literary ideals have also become increasingly prominent,and gradually have a wide and profound impact on the entire modern Chinese literary world.The literary debate is clearly a“self-classicization”media strategy chosen by Shen Congwen,whether it is a strong criticism of the“Shanghai school”writers’creative attitude of“playing with tickets for nothing”and the bad atmosphere of“commercial bidding”in the“Jinghai dispute”,or a fierce criticism of the formulaic and conceptual creative tendencies represented by the left-wing literary camp in the“anti-almost-the-same”debate.Behind it lies Shen Congwen’s consciousness of“self-classicization”.In fact,he wants to use the power of the group to showcase the liberal literary concepts he represents and leads,in order to occupy a place in the modern Chinese literary field and then point out the creative direction for his cherished“great Chinese literary works”.