约伯与俄狄浦斯的认识论及其思维特征

Epistemology and Characteristics of Thinking of Job and Oedipus

作为不同民族文化背景下的文学经典,《约伯记》和《俄狄浦斯王》都将最不应该受苦的人作为认识主体,提出了好人为何受苦以及人如何面对苦难的问题。立足于两个主人公对命运的终极认识,本文主要从认识主体本身的自我建构特征、认识论及其思维特征三个方面论述了二者的异同。就差异性而论,希伯来思维是一种深刻的心理理解,而希腊思维是一种清楚的、逻辑的认识。约伯和俄狄浦斯作为自我的创造者,都按照自己的思维原则自由选择了个体存在的方式,尽管二者有所不同——约伯从怀疑开始,自愿走上了虔诚的信仰之路;俄狄浦斯则始于主动规避,自觉走向道德的自我放逐。笼罩在约伯和俄狄浦斯头上的命运阴影至今没有完全消散,他们的悲剧从两个不同侧面映照出人类终极认识的有限性。

Though created out of different cultural contexts,both Job and Oedipus Rex place their protagonists in unanticipated sufferings and raise the question of why good people would suffer and how suffering could be faced. Based on two heroes’ ultimate comprehension of fate, this article discusses the similarities and differences between the two in three aspects: their self-construction,epistemology and ways of thinking. In terms of major differences,Hebrew thinking points to profound understanding, while the Greeks understand the world in a clear and logical way. Being the cultivators of their own selves, Job and Oedipus freely choose the paths of their existence in accordance with their respective principles of thought—Job starts from doubt, yet voluntarily takes the path of faith, while Oedipus begins with active avoidance, then consciously moves toward a moral self-exile. The shadow of fate over Job and Oedipus has not yet completely dissipated, and the finitude of human ultimate understanding is reflected by their tragedies from two different perspectives.