心志的美與情感的美—〈毛詩大序〉的重新詮釋

The Change from the Poetics of Aspiration to That of Emotions. A Study of the ＂Grand Preface of Mao's Book of Odes＂

簡良如(Chien Liang-ju)

《中國文化研究所學報》 新9期 (2000/01) Pp. 269-293

https://doi.org/10.29708/JCS.CUHK.200001_(9).0011

並列摘要

There are two interpretations dominating the studies of the Book of Odes(詩經).The first is the critical-educational viewpoint represented by the ＂Grand Preface of Mao's Book of Odes＂ (毛詩大序), the other is the literary aesthetical viewpoint represented by the Wenxin diaolong 文心雕龍. Both are in fact interpretations based on a poetics that treats aesthetical feelings as emotions. We call such a poetics the poetics of emotions. But in more olden times, there was another tradition which can be named as the poetics of aspirations. With it, aesthetical feelings are seen as aspirations from the soul, not emotions reacting to the outside world. Such a poetics is totally forgotten or even covered up. Our essay thus aims at a re-discovery of the meaning of such a poetics, as well as a study of this phenomenon of interpretations in the history of Chinese literature. The change from a poetics of aspiration to that of emotions alters the foundations of poetical creations, from that which takes poetry as different degrees of expressions or voices of active feelings of the human soul and character to that which takes feelings as passive sentiments reacting to external things and happenings. And from such a change, the author as well as the form of poetical writings are changed, and become fixed on literary techniques and the forms of poetical artwork itself. Our essay studies mainly the ＂Grand Preface＂ for it is the turning point of the transformation between the two poetics. We also take as point of reference the Wenxin diaolong, for it tries no more as the ＂Grand Preface to a certain synthesis of the two poetics, but rather pushes the poetics of emotions to the summit, and thus in the history of Chinese literature. achieves its total independency and ripening.