《聖經》的中國演義－－理雅各史傳小說《約瑟紀畧》（1852）研究

Literary Transformation of the Bible into Chinese: James Legge's Historical-biographical Novel 'Yuese Jilüe' (Life of Joseph, 1852)

十九世紀著名來華傳教士、漢學家理雅各（James Legge, 1815-1897）曾把基督教《聖經》〈創世記〉中的約瑟故事改編為章回體的史傳小說《約瑟紀畧》（1852）。小說選取了《聖經》當中較為有趣或具有戲劇性的素材，主要對其情節和人物性格的細節進行補充渲染，使《聖經》人物和事件更為立體豐滿，以提高中國讀者對《聖經》的閱讀興趣與接受程度。如此改編《聖經》原典，可算是中國傳統文學與《聖經》融合的典型例子，更可說是《聖經》的中國演義。通過仔細的文本分析論證，筆者認為《約瑟紀畧》體現了中國傳統小說「翼史補經」和「寓教於樂」的文藝精神，同時為「耶儒會通」與「聖經演義」提供了難得的文本案例。《約瑟紀畧》的研究能讓我們更深入地瞭解中國文學傳統在近代的嬗變，尤其是中國小說與《聖經》的互文影響，以及儒家思想與基督教文化的交流與會通。

James Legge (1815-1897), a renowned nineteenth century missionary and sinologist, adapted the story of Joseph as recorded in Genesis into a classical Chinese novel entitled ”Yuese jilüe” (約瑟紀畧Life of Joseph, 1852). He selected the more interesting and dramatic episodes of the original story, supplemented and exaggerated plot details and fleshed out biblical figures and events, so that the novel would arouse the interest of the Chinese reader and facilitate their reception of the Bible. This adaptation of a Bible story constitutes a classic example of the reconciliation of Biblical materials with traditional Chinese literature and religious culture, particularly Confucianism. A critical analysis of the text shows that the novel embodies features of the traditional Chinese novel such as the literary embellishment of history and infusion of moral teachings. This investigation deepens our understanding of the inter-textual influence between the Bible and Chinese literature, and the interplay between Confucian thought and Christian culture in the late imperial era.