從「功課單」到家政學──《聶氏重編家政學》所見晚清閨秀的家政論述

From“Gongke Dan”(Instructions on Daily Work) to Domestic Science: Late Qing Discourse on Domestic Science in Nie Shi Chongbian Jiazheng Xue

本文關注「家政學」在20世紀初文化劇變中的移植轉譯過程。1903年出版曾紀芬的《聶氏重編家政學》，乃「和製漢語」輸入中國時，最早的翻譯家政教科書之一。她對「家政學」的理解（或誤解），立基於家庭遺產及女學論辯的時代潮流，背後有其特定的立場和觀點，凸顯出中日「家政學」轉譯過程中的交涉與磨合。另一方面，此一個案研究，有助於我們發掘作為「家庭主婦」的晚清閨秀在近代中國社會改革中的能動性，此與過去學者從研究晚清「才女」轉型的取徑，也應有所區別。《聶氏重編家政學》以下田歌子《新選家政學》為底本，所主張「適應中國國情」的重新編輯，不只是客觀上中日氣候環境和生活習俗的差異，更重要的是，由於「主婦」概念蘊含著對理想家庭價值的期待，因此「家政學」便成為體現不同文化觀念和經濟生活的論述場域。書中所描繪的「內政總理」，乃是一種將傳統儒家婚姻觀、三從四德與西方女性新角色結合起來的中西文化雜揉體，並且強調主內政者的家內權威與道德人格之追求，全然不同於下田氏強調科學治家的「專業主婦」，由此重新塑造對「家政學」的新詮釋。

Nie shi chongbian jiazheng xue聶氏重編家政學(Domestic Science as Recompiled by Mrs. Nie; hereinafter Nie shi) published in 1903 by Zeng Jifen曾紀芬(1852–1942) was the earliest of a series of translated textbooks on domestic science containing Japanese neologisms introduced into late Qing China. Zeng’s understanding (and misconceptions) of domestic science was closely linked to her family legacy of home education and was set amongst broader contemporary debates about female education. The unique perspectives on family education discussed in this book highlight the process of adaption and negotiation whilst introducing Chinese translations of Japanese domestic science works into late Qing China. This case study of Nie shi also permits historians to delve into the dynamically changing character of the evolution of the concept of housewife from late Qing respectable ladies’circles to modern China’s emergence of ideas of female social reform. These historical developments should be clearly distinguished from research on“talented women”才女in late Qing China. Although Shimoda Utako’s下田歌子(1854–1936) concept of domestic science formed the foundation for Nie shi, Zeng Jifen’s compilation proposed that domestic science be adapted to suit China’s specific needs. Not only did this adaptation process include adjustments for Japanese and Chinese cultural differences, but Zeng’s introduction of domestic science also became a platform for a broader discourse on cultural values and expectations of domestic science in late Qing China. Moreover, the concept of a“domestic bursar”內政總理in this work entailed a unique composite blend of ideas revolving around the traditional Confucian concept of marriage, the three obediences and four virtues, and new Western female roles. Furthermore, the emphasis on the domestic authority of the domestic bursar and the perfection of her moral character was starkly different from Shimoda Utako’s stress on the scientific governance of the domestic household by a professional housewife. This case study thus reveals new interpretations of domestic science in late Qing China.