近代中國法律與社會的距離──1950年代在臺法學家論述之一隅

The Distance between the Modern Chinese Law and Society: One Aspect of the Discourses of the Jurists in Taiwan in the 1950s

國民政府時期的民、刑法典底定之時，官方主流論述認為中國當時之民族精神係王道精神、係社會本位，與同係社會本位之法典正相適合。然而經過一段時間的施行，法律與社會彼此不夠適合的問題浮上檯面，且日益受到重視。藉由王伯琦（1909-1961）著作中的相關討論及其所對話之論述，可以窺見1950年代法學界對此問題之看法的一隅。這些看法大致可分為以下三種：改革人民觀念以合於近代化之法律、恢復適於今用之傳統法律、司法社會化。其中陳顧遠（1895-1981）主張中國傳統法律屬特殊之義務本位，與社會本位接近；徐道鄰（1906-1973）認為唐律以禮教為中心，重人與人之關係，故合乎當時西方立法的社會本位價值觀；陶希聖（1899-1988）顧慮當時之民法離開中國實際之社會制度、組織太遠，而提出司法社會化以補救。王伯琦則認為中國傳統法律屬義務本位，當時之社會制度及組織係屬團體主義，均與社會本位之法典不合，可藉「法教」與「君子」中關於獨立人格之概念，建立人民的個人觀念，進而使人民具備近代西方的社會觀念，以配合社會本位立法。儘管他們意見不一，但在這些受過近代法學教育的法界菁英眼中，追求法律近代化的同時，固有傳統對當時社會、文化的影響依然無可迴避。在這些意見之中，晚清修律以來的「自然主義與理性主義之爭」、「特殊主義與普遍主義之爭」依然存在。

When the Civil and Criminal Codes were stabilized during the period of the Nationalist Government (Guomin zhengfu國民政府, 1925-1948), the official mainstream discourse held that China’s national spirit at the time was that of the Kingly Way and was society-centered; it thus suited the society-centered Civil and Criminal Codes. However, after a period of implementation, the problem of law and society not fitting each other surfaced and received increasing attention. The relevant discussions in the writings of Wang Po-chi王伯琦(1909-1961) and other legal scholars provide a glimpse into the views of the jurisprudential circle on this issue in the 1950s. These views can be roughly divided into the following three types: reforming popular conceptions to conform to modern laws; restoring traditional laws that were suitable for modern use; and judicial socialization. Among these scholars, Chen Ku-yuan陳顧遠(1895-1981) argued that traditional Chinese law was special obligation-centered, and thus was close to being society-centered. Hsu Dau-lin徐道鄰(1906-1973) believed that the law of the Tang Dynasty was centered on the Confucian code of ethics, and valued the relationships between people, so it was in line with the Western society-centered legislation of that time; Tao Hsi-sheng陶希聖(1899-1988) was concerned that the civil law at that time was too far from China’s actual social system and organization, and proposed judicial socialization as a remedy. Wang Po-chi believed that traditional Chinese law was obligation-centered, and the social system and organization at that time were collectivist; these were inconsistent with the society-centered code. He recommended that“the Enlightenment of Law”(fajiao法教) and the concept of independent personhood in the“Man of Virtue”(junzi君子) could be used to establish a popular concept of the individual and lead the people to the modern western concept of society, in order to better fit the society-centered legislation. Although their ideas differed, in the eyes of these legal elites who had received a modern legal education, the influence of tradition on the society and culture of the time was still unavoidable, even as they pursued the modernization of law. In these opinions,“the Controversy between Naturalism and Rationalism”and“the Controversy between Particularism and Universalism”that had existed since the late Qing Dynasty revision of the law are still present.