淡化「歷史」的尋根熱－－重探大陸新時期小說的魔幻現實主義

Neglect of ＂History＂ in the Root-Searching Fever-Re-Seeking Magical Realism in the Mainland Chinese New Era Novels

論及大陸新時期的尋根小說，總不免涉及拉美的魔幻現實主義，但是細究其「在地化」的過程，卻可發現一相當耐人尋味的議題——淡化「歷史」的尋根熱。如果說探尋「歷史」，是一個民族自我身份認同及定位必經的過程，那麼，「尋根」就是在新時期階段新舊文化交融之下，對民族及身份認同的另一種表現。可是相對於拉美魔幻現實主義小說以重構官方歷史為敘述主軸，大陸尋根小說何以要迴避此一重要課題？本文將就文化尋根的審美意識和民族議題的文化尋根兩大方向探究原委，並且嘗試從「歷史」的不在場釐析尋根小說的現實關懷。

The root-searching novels in the New Era China are related to Magical Realism in Latin American Literature. However, during the process of the ＂localization＂ of Magical Realism in China, one intriguing/ironic phenomenon emerges-people who exhibit root searching fever tend to neglect history. Generally speaking, if exploring history is a necessary procedure for revealing a nation's identity, root-searching will be another representation of a nation’s identity in the New Era when Mainland China encounters the integration of traditional and modern cultures. While most of the Magical Realism novels in Latin America attempt to reconstruct the narratives of the official history, the Mainland Chinese root-searching novels try to avoid this essential project. This study aims to solve the puzzle from two perspectives: 1) the aesthetic value of cultural root-searching and 2) the ethnicity of cultural root-searching. In addition, this study intends to analyze the realistic concerns in the root-searching novels in which ＂history＂ is absent.