過去對《西京雜記》的討論主要以辨偽、制度考證與典故文獻源流等史料研究為主,本文試圖將這部充滿零碎資訊的雜記放回魏晉史學反思的脈絡,藉由序言提供的線索,省視葛洪如何透過「斷片」這種特殊形式彰顯歷史與記憶、傳統與過去間複雜而辨證的關係。《西京雜記》的序言透過假托劉歆的「漢書雜記」與班固《漢書》對比,引導讀者思索代表「過去」的兩種樣貌:尚未完結的當代記憶與蓋棺論定的後人視角。同時,序言也將無論在命名還是形式上都更靠向「漢書雜記」的《西京雜記》,定位為一部標誌著「雜記」與《漢書》本質差異的孑遺。透過敘事者充滿細節的記憶斷片,它保存了無法為史書敘事化約的多元視角與生命感知。同時,藉由不具時序、類別、因果關聯的紛雜斷片,它也擱置了對事件價值與意義的判斷。此一作法一方面展現了身處其中之人受限的視域,另一方面也提醒讀者歷史敘事與傳統是如何在選擇、剪裁、脈絡化與詮釋中逐步形成,進而反思被刪汰遺落的廣袤之野中還有什麼不同於正史的可能。序言所謂「以裨《漢書》之闕」固然可理解為補充歷史文本的闕遺,但在新時代對歷史與真實的省思中,這本不為《漢書》所選取的斷片集也填補了傳統歷史書寫本身的闕憾。
Research on the Xijing zaji 西京雜記 has centered on determining the authenticity of the text and analyzing its contents to study the rituals and institutions of the Western Han dynasty. The purpose of this article is to investigate this fragmentary text from the perspective of the historiography of early medieval China. The preface to the text makes use of a comparison between Liu Xin's 劉歆 Hanshu zaji 漢書雜記 and Ban Gu's 班固 Hanshu 漢書 to encourage the reader to ponder two representations of the past: one belonging to the contemporary generation; the other to later generations. The main difference between these representations lies not in the facts they chose to document, but in the way such facts are depicted (or not). As fragments not chosen by Ban Gu, the entries in the Xijing zaji show multiple perspectives and vivid memories that cannot be reduced to a single narrative in official history. Going beyond sequences, categories and cause-effect relationships, this work provides a glimpse of the limitation of contemporary representation and reminds the reader of the process involved in "making" history and tradition.