“复线历史”的书写可能——从清季历史教科书谈起

The Possibility of Writing “Multilinear History”—A Discussion Starting from the History Textbooks of the Late Qing Dynasty

清季历史教科书在叙述中国历史特别是清代本朝史时,大体遵循线性历史叙事下的普遍主义历史观,以适应民族国家时代到来的新挑战,但中国历史发展的独特性,导致书写实践中存在矛盾纠结和进退失据之处。只有从经典的以欧式民族国家话语为准绳的线性历史观中走出来,方能写出符合中国历史实际的史著。这恰恰表明中国历史书写具有另一种可能——走“复线历史”之路,建构起中国式的从天下、王朝国家走向民族国家的历史书写线索和路径。

The history textbooks of the late Qing Dynasty,when narrating Chinese history,especially the history of the Qing dynasty,generally follow the universalist historical view under the narrative of linear history,in order to adapt to the new challenges brought by the era of the nation-state.However,the uniqueness of Chinese historical development has led to contradictions,entanglements,and indecisiveness in writing practice.Only by stepping out of the classic linear historical view,which takes the discourse of the European nation-state as the standard,can we write a history that conforms to the actual situation of Chinese history.This precisely indicates that there is another possibility for Chinese historical writing-to take the path of“multilinear history”and build a Chinese-style historical writing clue and path from the world,the dynasty state to the nation-state.