地方博物館對國家認同的形塑－以新加坡牛車水華人原貌館為例

位於新加坡寶塔街的牛車水華人原貌館，保留了1950年代店屋的特色，透過展示常民的歷史與文化，再現集體記憶與個人經驗的交織，底層華人社群的歷史與記憶便在如此的空間中被展開。本文嘗試探究原貌館如何將許多不為人知的故事，編織成有別於國家博物館的歷史視角、其用意與意義；嘗試理解展示中底層華人社群之角色與形象，及其與當今移民社群的關係。研究發現，原貌館嘗試以歷史中的底層華人社群與當今牛車水居民的角度去看歷史，以個人經驗故事做為新的切入點，述說在國家史觀下時常被遺漏的常民生活史，讓過去被遺忘的華人移民勞工的面目不再模糊。然而，展示亦透過許多常民的故事來教育年輕一代「堅忍、掙扎以及忠誠」的意義，將移民勞工「吃苦、向上」的精神與新加坡的歷史綁在一起。如此的歷史與形象的塑造，投射出當今新加坡的社會所重視的價值以及對其國民之要求與期許。結論指出原貌館在面臨中國崛起下的潛能在地方(place-making)的尺度，將華人生命的意義地方化、將牛車水的歷史記憶與當代接軌，呈現與國家博物館系統差異的論述，並進一步思考原貌館做為離散空間的可能。

關鍵字

離散族群與國家認同；展示移民；牛車水原貌館；新加坡華人移民勞工

並列摘要

Situated on Pagoda Street, the Chinatown Heritage Centre (CHC) retains its 1950s' shop-house façade, where the history and personal stories of Chinese migrant labors are displayed. The CHC served as a case study, in which interviews were conducted and exhibitions were analyzed to discern the history and memory of early Chinese migrant laborers and how they are represented in relation to national history and modern migration. This study found that CHC consciously attempted to cross the boundaries that national awareness laid for exhibiting history, by integrating migrant laborer into the national history, strengthening today's multivariate society as results of migration. Citing from theater elements, early Chinese migrant laborers are provided with a voice equal to the ＂museum voice＂, allowing them to dramatically transform from the other to the self. However, CHC also used the laborers' images to shape a new national identity, in which images of diligence, loyalty, and national devotion project the values and expectation of modern Singapore society. In this paper, the question of whether there is the possibility for the CHC to become a ＂diaspora space＂ is addressed, further noting the significance of its location in Chinatown where historical memory is etched into the landscape and people. There is great potential in terms of place-making and localizing memories and meaning of early Chinese migrants, suggesting a slightly different discourse on Chinese migration history in Singapore.