Experiments in Self-Narration in Twentieth-Century Chinese Fiction

二十世紀中國小說中自我敘事的實驗

Terry Siu-Han Yip

《Tamkang Review》 41卷1期 (2010/12) Pp. 1-22

https://doi.org/10.6184/TKR.201012_41(1).0001

摘要

說故事是一種表達的形式，藉此，敘事者不只進一步了解周遭世界，也了解自我。這意味著，自我的敘述常與作爲主體之自我的建構或解構息息相關。在中國與西歐之諸多文學作品中，作家常檢視自我形成與社會、文化環境之關係，但也造成自我與理性、群體或政治團體之間的衝突。這種顧慮是二十世紀許多作家的中心點，他們對敘事模式的試驗不只反映他們的藝術傾向，有意識擺脫現有範疇以到達新領域的企圖，也反映他們想了解他們的經驗，以及在不斷的變化中找到安身之處、了解自我之熱切慾望。
受到歐洲作家的影響，許多中國作家，如一九二○年代的郁達夫、廬隱、與丁玲，一九八○年代與九○年代的張辛欣與高行健，都曾嘗試脫離主流的、支配的敘事模式，這些模式傾向於把文學作爲個人見證或社會道德宣言。他們有意識地尋求替代模式的表達，使他們能處理生存中個人及心理、文化的層面。展現在他們的書寫裡的是身陷傳統與現代文化衝突，中國與西方價值衝突的個人。他們有意識地尋求新的身分認同與建構／解構個人自我的全圖顯現出中國的文化失調。
從這觀點來說，文中選擇之文本其重要性與其說是對文化、性、政治與歷史之評論，毋寧說是在於其敘事模式。作者對敘事模式之試驗使他們能充分探索自我之本質，是中國人所了解的自我之本質，也是在自我之建構與解構之過程中、對文化問題之整體關懷中－包括角色認同與文化認同之形成的問題，以及西化與／或現代化對個人衝擊之質詢－所了解的自我本質。

關鍵字

自我形塑 ； 文化認同 ； 主體性 ； 試驗 ； 敘事模式 ； 性別 ； 現代化解構

並列摘要

Storytelling is a form of expression through which the narrator seeks to better understand not just the world around but also his or her self. That implies the narration of the self is often related to the construction or deconstruction of the self as the subject. In many literary works from both China and Western Europe, writers often examine self-formation in relation to the socio-cultural milieu, which immediately puts the individual at odds with the rational, collective, or political group. Such concerns have been the focal point of many writers of the twentieth century whose experimentations with the narrative mode reflect not only their artistic inclinations and conscious attempts to break from existing paradigms to reach new frontiers, but also their ardent desire to make sense of their experience and to position themselves and understand their selves in the flux of change.
Influenced by their European counterparts, many Chinese writers such as Yu Dafu, Lu Yin and Ding Ling in the 1920s, and Zhang Xinxin and Gao Xingjian in the 1980s and 1990s have all attempted to break from prevailing/dominant modes of narrative that tend to treat literature as personal testimonies or socio-moral manifestoes. They consciously look for alternate modes of expression-new modes that allow them to address the personal and the psycho-cultural aspects of existence. Presented in their writings are individuals caught in conflicts between traditional and modern culture, and between Chinese and Western values. Their conscious quest for a new identity and their attempts to (de) construct their individual selves reveal the cultural disorientation in China.
Viewed in this light, the significance of the selected texts lies not so much in their comments on culture, sexuality, politics and history as in their modes of narrative. The writers' experimentations with the narrative mode enable them to fully explore the essence of self as understood by the Chinese, the process of construction or deconstruction of the self, their general concerns over cultural issues, including issues pertaining to role identity and the formation of cultural identity, as well as their inquiry into the impact of Westernization and/or modernization on the individual.

並列關鍵字

self fashioning ； cultural identity ； subjectivity ； experimentations ； narrative modes ； gender ； modernization ； deconstruction