殷海光與1940、50年代的自由主義――殷海光歷史位置的一個探討

Yin Hai-kuang and Chinese Liberalism of the 1940s and 1950s: His Intellectual Evolution and Historical Significance

本文是關於殷海光（1916?-1969）的研究，處理兩個問題。一個是殷海光思想從1940年代中葉到1950年代中葉的演變，一個是他在思想史上的地位。殷海光雖然是教授邏輯和科學哲學的學者，他最大的影響和最有深度的貢獻是在政治思想方面：他是自由主義思想在華文世界最關鍵的建立者和闡發者之一。殷海光的重要性久已為人所認知，不過有關他的研究中，好像還沒有直接討論他的思想史地位的，他的思想演變也有不清楚之處。本文把這兩個問題連結在一起，進行探討，希望能深化我們對殷海光個人以及現代中國自由主義的認識。關於殷海光的早期思想，最著名的說法是，他是從法西斯主義者轉而認同自由主義，本文指出這是值得商榷的說法，並且考察他的自由主義思想的形成。此外，在現代中國，自由主義成為重要的力量，要到1945年中日戰爭結束以後。這個浪潮只在中國本土活躍了幾年，1949年以後，它成為在臺灣和香港的離散現象，持續到1960年左右。殷海光的政治論述生涯剛好與這個自由主義浪潮相始終，也和50年代離散自由主義的突破性密切相關。本文也探討殷海光政治思想與這個大局的關係，藉此揭示他的思想史地位。

This study of Yin Hai-kuang (1916?-1969) deals with two issues. One is the evolution of his thought from the mid-1940s to the mid-1950s, and the other is his position in intellectual history. Although Yin was a university professor of logic and philosophy of science, his greatest influence and contribution lie in the realm of political ideas. He is one of the most critical builders and interpreters of liberalism in the Chinese-speaking world. His importance has long been recognized, but considerations of his position in intellectual history have been lacking. The political ideas of his early years also require clarification. This study links these two issues together, with the hope that such an exploration can deepen our understanding of both Yin the person and modern Chinese liberalism in general.
With regard to the early thought of Yin Hai-kuang, the best-known account is that he was a fascist-turned-liberal. This study reconstructs the formation of Yin's liberal positions, and points out that the commonly held view is highly questionable. Yin also had an unusually close relationship with the heights of Chinese liberalism in the mid-twentieth century. Chinese liberalism achieved unprecedented influence after 1945, at the close of World War II. Yet it was only active for a few years in the Chinese mainland. Upon the Communist takeover in 1949, it became a diaspora phenomenon in Taiwan and Hong Kong in the 1950s, and lost its steam thereafter. Yin's career as a political polemist and theorist coincided almost completely with this current. Moreover, he played a pivotal role in the intellectual breakthrough of diaspora Chinese liberalism. This study also examines the relationship between Yin and this mid-century trend, so that his historical significance can be illuminated.