论皮埃尔·贝尔的中国观——以《历史和批判词典》为例

On Pierre Bayle’s Views on China--Taking the Dictionnaire Historique Et Critique as an Example

皮埃尔·贝尔在《历史和批判词典》中以中国传统思想为借鉴,倡导在欧洲建立无神论社会。他以中国人的信仰、基督教在华传播及斯宾诺莎三个主题展开论证,以德拉卢贝尔的间接描述为主要依据,构建其批判天主教和宗教蒙昧的论据。该词典所体现的中国观是贝尔中国观变化发展的一环,从批判中国占星术,到确认中国传统思想的无神论因素,再到专注论证中国的无神论信仰及社会,中国作为其宣扬自身理念的参照物价值逐渐凸显,这一视角为后世关注中国的欧洲思想家建立了范式。

In his Dictionnaire Historique Et Critique,Pierre Bayle advocates the establishment of an atheistic society in Europe drawing upon traditional Chinese thought.He develops his thesis on three themes:the beliefs of the Chinese,the spread of Christianity in China,and Spinoza,using De La Lubère’s indirect descriptions as the main basis for constructing his arguments for criticising Catholicism and religious obscurantism.The view of China embodied in the dictionary is part of the changing development of Bayle’s view of China,from the critique of Chinese astrology,to the confirmation of the atheistic elements of traditional Chinese thought,to the focus on arguing for atheistic beliefs and societies in China,where the value of China as a point of reference for the proclamation of his own ideas is gradually coming into prominence,and where this perspective established a paradigm for future European thinkers who are concerned with China.