論胡適中國文藝復興論述的來源及其作用

On the Origin and Function of Hu Shih's Narrative of the Chinese Renaissance

胡適（1891-1962）經常把中國的新文化運動與歐洲的文藝復興運動（Renaissance）相提並舉，更被推許為「中國文藝復興之父」。不少學者因而從歷史研究的角度檢討這個類比，審視中西這兩場文化運動的異同，藉此評論胡適的說法是否恰當。然而近年的東方主義研究提醒我們，胡適經常提及的文藝復興，除了表示歐洲某一特定時期的歷史事件外，同時也是一個想像性的比喻（imaginary metaphor），是胡適本人的新文化運動經驗的其中一個組成部分。考察這個喻體的來源、內涵和作用，無疑可以從另一個角度補充過去比較史學研究的不足。有見及此，本文試圖闡述胡適建構其中國文藝復興論述的過程，以及這些論述所產生的作用。文章首先會回溯胡適早年閱讀薛謝兒（Edith Sichel）相關著作的經驗，分析胡適接收歐洲文藝復興時的詮釋傾向；繼而揭示胡適與王克私（Philippe de Vargas）之間的學術互動，重點抉發二人在觀點上的分歧，藉此說明胡適的中國文藝復興的涵義及其作用，深化現有的相關研究。

Hu Shih 胡適, praised as ”the Father of the Chinese Renaissance,” often juxtaposes the Chinese New Culture Movement and the European Renaissance. Many scholars have thus tended to examine this analogy from the perspective of comparative history, evaluating the appropriateness of Hu's view through close examination of the similarities and the differences between these two cultural movements. However, the Orientalist research of recent years reminds us that Hu's Renaissance narrative not only concerns the events of a designated period of European history, but is also an imaginary metaphor constituting part of Hu's own experience of the New Culture Movement. Scrutinizing this metaphor's origin, meaning and function from an alternative perspective can undoubtedly help address the shortcomings of past comparative historical studies. In view of this, this article attempts to elucidate the process by which Hu constructs his discourse of the Chinese Renaissance, as well as the narrative function of such a discourse. It first revisits Hu's experience of reading Edith Sichel's book, analyzing his hermeneutical approach to acquiring the European Renaissance, and then explores the academic exchanges between Hu and Philippe de Vargas, with a focus on their different views of the Chinese Renaissance. This research clarifies the meaning and function of Hu's notion of the Chinese Renaissance, deepening the investigations carried out in recent related studies.