進化與自由——胡適自由主義中的歷史觀及其意涵

Evolution and Liberty in the Liberalism of Hu Shih

本文之目的在於經由檢視胡適自由主義中所透露出的進化史觀，說明他所主張之進化與自由之意函。文中首先以嚴復的進化史觀為例，找出中國近代進化論述的原型（包括其內容與相關問題），而後再借此原型為對照，看出胡適所考量進化與自由之特色。這一方式使我們得以指出，近代中國自由主義自嚴復以迄於胡適之間，雖然同樣強調進化與自由，卻也呈現出由強調外在之歷史力量，轉至強調個人及其選擇所具有意義之傾向。此外，文中所述胡適之立場，亦顯示出他一方面批評單線演化史觀，另一方面並不曾完全放棄其內容與論述方式，也不曾正視其限制。胡適強調個人的創發性，並駁斥梁漱溟與馬克斯主義者之主張歷史有其既定發展原則的說法。但是，他在說明中國文化與民主之未來等關鍵性議題上，最終只是訴諸外在於個人之歷史力量。他將如何更有效地聯繫民主制度、個人自由和人類歷史的未來這一問題，留給了後人。

This essay aims to elucidate the meanings of evolution and liberty in Hu Shih's liberalism; it explores the ways in which Hu criticized as well as made use of the unilinear conception of history. A preliminary reconstruction of the modern Chinese discourse of evolution based on Yen Fu's discussions has served as guidelines in analyzing the ideas of Hu Shih. This approach helps to first identify the shift of emphasis from Yen's concern for the objective laws of history to Hu's concern for the role of accidents and human choices in the shaping of history. Second, it has also become clear that Hu Shih was ambivalent in his criticism of the unilinear conception of history. On the one hand, emphasizing individual creativity and choices, he challenged Liang Shu-ming and Chinese Marxists, who were more concerned with historical laws of development. On the other hand, Hu Shih, in the final analysis, argued for the prospects of Chinese culture and of democracy in terms of the forces and tides of history. He left to the posterity the problem of relating individual freedom, democracy, and their future in history in a more effective manner.