論說戲曲之「遭遇」並為其「發聲」

Speaking for the Traditional Chinese Drama: A Discussion on Its Historical Fate

本文論說戲曲歷代被鄙薄之情況：衛道之士，或視之為「穢嫚嬛褻」、「勸淫為俠」；或視為「小道末技」、「體卑藝賤」。即使近代五四運動諸君子，亦論之為「幼稚惡劣」、「助長淫殺」；乃當今最高學術殿堂，尚有一二「耄耋碩儒」斥之為「沒有思想」、「沒有文化」。若論其故，則先秦儒家對「歌樂」崇雅鄙俗之觀念影響後世歷久不衰；以及宋元戲曲作者多為書會才人、演員多為樂戶歌妓，遭遇不偶、處身卑賤，實有以致之。
但是亦有開明之士對戲曲持肯定之見解：如孔子之認同合乎禮俗之戲樂，司馬遷表彰倡優滑稽諷諫之功能，元人胡祇遹讚嘆藝人有「九美」之說，鍾嗣成認為戲曲作者是「不死之鬼」，虞集更以北雜劇為「一代絕藝」，其後如明人李贄、茅一相、于若瀛、陳與郊、息機子，清人李漁、宋廷魁等也莫不有戲曲為「一代文學」之看法。於是明清乃至民國文士，透過詩詞曲之異同比較，以見曲更具高難度之學者，亦頗有其人，如明人臧懋循、王驥德、黃周星，清人田同之、陳棟、楊恩壽與近人任訥等；而筆者更從體製、音律、語言、內容、風格五方面之比較，以見曲較諸詩詞之特色，而足為一代文學之理由，並由此又進一步論述戲曲之質性與今日因應之道，認定戲曲最足為民族文學藝術之具體表徵。

This paper deals with the literati’s contempt for the traditional Chinese drama in history. The traditionalists regarded Chinese drama either as “dirty and obscene” or as “trivial and humble.” The modern scholars of the May 4th Movement also criticized it as “naive and odious.” Even in the highest academic hall, there were still some “old and learned” scholars denounced Chinese drama as “no thought''and “no culture”. These negative comments for Chinese drama were mainly influenced by the Confucian concept of respecting “elegance” and despising “vulgarity” for generations. In addition, the authors of the Song and Yuan drama were mainly the dramatists from the professional theatrical society and the actors were poor and humble singers from the music households.
Nevertheless, there were also open-minded men who held positive views of Drama: such as Confucius' identification with music conforming to the customs; Sima Qian’s commending the entertainers’ comic and satirical functions. Moreover, Hu Zhiyu’s of the Yuan praised the artists with his theory of “nine beauties.” Zhong Sicheng believed that the dramatists were “immortal ghosts.'' Yu Ji regarded the Northern Drama as “unique art of a generation.'' Later, in the the Ming Dynasty, Li Zhi, Mao Yixiang, Yu Ruoying, Chen Yujiao, Xi Jizi and Li Yu, Song Kuiting of the Qing all proposed that drama was “the literature of a generation.” Moreover, there were scholars of the Ming and Qing Dynasty and the Republican period such as Zang Maoxun, Wang Jide, Huang Zhouxing of the Ming, and Tian Tongzhi, Chen Dong, Yang Enshou and Renne, who highlighted the difficulty of writing drama by comparing the similarities and differences between shi, ci and qu poetry. To make a further exploration, I will compare from the five aspects of system, music, language, content and style to present the features of qu which will explain why drama could be the literature of a generation. And thus I will further discuss the nature of Chinese drama and the way should be taken to confirm Chinese drama as a concrete symbol representative of national literature and art.