西方早期对中华文化二种截然相反的解说

Two Completely Different Comments of Chinese Culture in the Early West

西方对中国的了解并形成真正意义上的中国观最早在18世纪。在此中国观的形成伊始,令人注目地出现了二种对中华文化截然相反的解说:其一,将中华儒家文化视为独具理性精神的人类文化;其二,将中国人视为不诚实的民族,将传统中国视为专制当道的国度。这二种解说对西方人中国观发生了经久不衰的深远影响,以致当今西方人的脑海中还多多少少地留有着这种早期解说的印痕。此外,这二种不同解说的同时并存,更是加深了西方人脑海中“中国人不可理喻”的印象。

The purpose of this paper is to tell what the two completely different comments is and how the two inflence the impressions of China in westerner' s minds. Although the west has begun to understand China since two thousands years ago. In fact, the impressions of China in the west at first formed at the 18 century. And two famous completely different comments appeared at that time. One of the two regarded the Chinese culture as a kind of unique human culture. The other treated Chinese as dishonest nation and thought the traditional China as a autocratic country. The two comments have a prolonged and far - reaching influence on the impressions of China in westerner' s mind. So that, the traces of the early comments is still in their mind, more or less. Besides, the two comments exist stimutaneously, so the impression that 'Chinese is impervious to reason' is further pro-founded.