誰是患者？民國時期「文明病」的誕生

Who is Patient: Emerge of the “Disease of Civilization＂ in Republican China

本文嘗試以文明病為討論個案，透過考察詞彙的使用與流傳軌跡，勾勒出使民國時期，使相關疾病概念得已發展的社會背景。本文主張，藉由討論文明病，能夠讓我們理解民國時期，文明／現代／進步等概念，如何被接受以及想像。本文發現，文明病於最初被提出時，具有濃厚的政治意涵。然而，於詞彙發展的過程中，相關論者開始使用文明病的概念，質疑「文明」等同「進步」的主張。基此，本文嘗試指出文明病具有的研究潛力，透過分析文明病的相關輿論，我們能夠跳脫出文明與野蠻；進步與退步的二元框架，更細緻地探詢民國時期的觀念變化。

This paper discusses the term “Diseases of Civilization” and strives to outline the social context that allowed for developing related pathological concepts in Republican China by examining its usage and transmission trajectory, which help us understand how the concepts such as “civiliza-tion”, “modernity”, and “progress” were accepted and imagined in Republican China. The con-clusion indicates that Diseases of Civilization was initially introduced with a strong political connotation; however, Diseases of Civilization was used as an idea to question the claim that “civilization” is equivalent to “progress”. This paper also attempts to point out the research po-tential of Diseases of Civilization. By analyzing public opinions, we can break away from the binary framework of civilized and uncivilized or progress and regression and more sophisticat-edly inquire into the changes of perceptions in Republican China.