古代經典與當代文化之斷裂與連續－－「歷史主義」的述評

Disparity and Continuum between Ancient Classics and Contemporary Culture: A Historicist Review

在當前台灣通識教育課程中，「中華古代經典」的意義、價值和功能的分析討論，牽涉到「傳統和現代化」在中西文化的比較、對立、衝擊和調適中的定位和動向。本文回顧近百年來「現代化」和「西化」的趨勢，以及「全盤西化」和「現代化即西化」的理論，對中華文化傳統（尤其是儒家經典）的致命衝擊。並指出：雖然現代化和西化在海峽兩岸（馬克思主義和資本主義）都是勢不可當的走向，但中華文化傳統（包括儒家經典）面對種種打擊，卻是「野火燒不盡，春風吹又生」。作為中華文化傳統代言人的「國粹論」者、「文化本位論」者和「現代新儒家」，在中、外學術論壇上，也居有不容忽視的發言地位。最近在台灣突顯的「民粹主義」和「後現代主義」，表面上雖然視「中華文化傳統」為寇讎，但在理論底線上，卻與「文化傳統」、「文化本位」論者同樣地站在「主體‧主位」的出發點，對「現代主義」、「資本主義」和「殖民主義」採取批判態度。本文分析了「現代主義」（Levenson） 、「新儒家」、「杭定頓文明論」和「後現代主義」文化觀，並提出「歷史主義」作為解決「主義」紛爭和「意義」斷裂的底線立場。

The deterioration of our present-day students' language ability, background knowledge, or even their overall aptitude for learning the Chinese classics, involves some more complicated and troublesome issues than that of mere school curriculum. It is symptomatic of a deepening cultural crisis, especially that of cultural fragmentation. A simple effort to strengthen the 'Chinese classics curriculum' will not do, because the said cultural fragmentation has its very origins and takes its major form in the conflict between the 'traditionalist-classicist' and the 'anti-traditionalist-modernist' of cultural-ideological advocacy. The struggle has been going on during the last one hundred years or so and more recently has been complicated by the transplanted 'postmodemist' drives for cultural and ideological multiplicity and pluralism. The article reviews the roots of the crisis of modem Chinese education in its treatment of the 'Classics' and China's traditional culture, the positivist-modernist attack on traditional Chinese culture, and the survival and revivalism of Chinese cultural tradition. It then analyzes the dilemma of the Positivist, the Neo-Confucian, the Huntingtonian and the postmodemist paradigms in handling the issues regarding the disparity and continuum between ancient Classics and contemporary culture. The author suggests that, as an intermediary measure, a historicist approach may help extricate the 'Chinese Classics' from the said adversarial bend, preserve its significance as the ancient canonical corpus writ, and explore its relevance to the modern and postmodem world. The author laments the misrepresentation of 'historicism' by Fu Ssu-nien, perhaps the singly most influential historian of 20th century China, and calls for a correct approach to 'historicism' as a prerequisite to properly approaching the issues of the meaning and value of the classical legacy and the cultural tradition in modern China.