“导夫先路”:论早期经典与中国古代的传记书写

“The Guide to the Previous Path”:On Early Classics and Biographical Writing in Ancient China

早期经典对于中国古代传记书写的诞生与演进产生了重要影响,为中国古代不同历史时期的传记书写文学与史学元素始终相互杂糅,又各有消长的具体形态奠定了基础。从发展历程来看,以早期经典为核心文献的先秦两汉时代是中国古代传记书写的诞生期。先秦时代早期典籍相关的传记书写,使得叙述重心发生由“事”向“人”的转向。两汉时期以《史记》《汉书》为代表的史传书写,确立了传记书写“事实真实”与“叙述真实”的合法兼容。早期经典为中国古代传记书写的整体形态与发展走向奠定了基础,剖析早期经典与中国古代传记书写之间的递变与互动,对于传承发展中华优秀传统文化,在新的历史起点上建设中华民族现代文明,坚定文化自信,具有重要的意义。

Early classics have a significant impact on the birth and evolution of ancient Chinese biographical writing,laying the foundation for the continuous mixing of literary and historical elements in different historical periods of ancient Chinese biographical writing,each with specific forms of growth and decline.From the perspective of development history,the Pre-Qin era and Han Dynasties,with early classics as the core documents,were the birth period of ancient Chinese biographical writing.The biographical writing related to the early classics of the Pre-Qin era led to a shift in the narrative focus from“events”to“people”.During the Han Dynasty,historical biographical writing represented by the Records of the Grand Historian and Book of Han established the legal compatibility between“factual truth”and“narrative truth”in biographical writing.Early classics laid the foundation for the overall form and development of ancient Chinese biographical writing.Analyzing the evolution of and interaction between early classics and ancient Chinese biographies has a great significance for deeply inheriting and developing excellent traditional Chinese culture,building modern Chinese civilization at a new historical starting point,and strengthening cultural confidence.