蔡襄以書學聞名於世,許多研究多聚焦在其美學成就。然而,蔡襄是活動於北宋仁宗至英宗時期的官員,亦是參與慶曆改革的人員之一,思想意識受慶曆學風影響深刻,但前人的研究上常忽略他的政治觀點。本研究利用文獻回顧,著重於與蔡襄任官時期相關的文字資料,分析其思想觀與實際政治作為。研究分析的結果顯示,蔡襄的思想與政治作為有一致之處,其政治理念是和所處環境交互作用後,以應用為導向來制訂的政策以解決問題。藉由蔡襄的研究,可以部分勾勒出北宋中期中央與地方官員的思考模式與實際作為,並使日後的討論者對蔡襄與當時代之政治思想的其他議題有更多的思索與發現。
The majority of studies on Cai Xiang have focused on his calligraphy, for which he was famous. However, despite the fact that he also gained fame for his participation in the Qingli reform movement, Cai Xiang’s political thought has been largely ignored. This thesis analyzes Cai’s political thought as well as his practical policy proposals. This analysis shows that in terms of ideology, Cai followed the dao of the sages, whereas in terms of practical politics he accorded with a more general dao. This thesis argues that Cai’s political thought was not theoretically sophisticated, and that his ideas were intended to solve concrete problems. By discussing the political thought and practice of Cai Xiang ,we can shed light on the history of the Northern Song Dynasty and the activities of central and local government officials.