复数的“文明”:《文明小史》与晚清中国的“现代”风景

The Plural“Civilization”:A Brief History of Civilization and the“Modern”Landscape of Late Qing China

晚清中国社会、知识经历重大转折,对现代“文明”的追逐成为时代的主流趋向,其间既有物质、技术、思想等层面的不同,也存在因“文明”本土再造而产生的对“现代”的不同想象和实践。李伯元的《文明小史》接续中国“外史”写作传统,以史官姿态为“文明”立史,却又自居于“小”的立场,寓时代观察于小说写作当中,补文明演变宏大叙事之不足。小说以书写“文明”的日常真实性为旨趣,揭示1900年代前后“传统”与“现代”相互交错、现代“文明”在中国的展开及其命运等思想面相,展现晚清中国现代演进的多重风景。

Li Boyuan’s A Brief History of Civilization continues the tradition of Chinese“external history”writing,establish⁃ing the history of“civilization”from the perspective of a historian.However,it positions itself in a“minor”stance,embedding observations of the times within novel writing,thereby compensating for the shortcomings of grand narratives in the evolution of civilization.The novel aims to depict the daily authenticity of“civilization”,revealing the interweaving of“tradition”and“mo⁃dernity”around the 1900s,the development and fate of modern“civilization”in China,and other ideological aspects,showcas⁃ing the multiple landscapes of modern evolution in late Qing China.