「哈甫色維來意斯得」與「巴爾比里安」---近代中國國族論述中的「半開/野蠻他者」建構想像

Abstract

「哈甫色維?意斯得」與「巴爾比?安」: 近代中國國族?述中的「半開/野蠻他者」建構想像有關近代中國國族認同課題的研究到目前為止，大都聚焦於傳統人物和現代意象，例如黃帝、病夫、黃禍，如何被挪用以代表中國國族的集體認同。然而，如同許多理論學者（例如薩依德）所指出，任何認同的建構過程，包含國族認同的建構，必定牽涉到關於「他者們」的複雜建構過程。因此，探討「他者們」如何被建構想像，無疑是了解近代中國國族認同的一個相當重要的課題。另一方面，如眾所知，自從十九世紀晚期開始，中國政治知識菁英逐漸認知到以歐洲為中心之世界秩序的霸權地位。在此新秩序下中國被視為是半開（哈甫色維?意斯得）國家，甚至有些中國知識份子更悲觀地認為是屬於野蠻人(巴爾比?安)之流。許多中國知識菁英因而不確定如何定位中國在此新秩序的位階，並且對於中國的國族認同深感疑惑。基於上述情況，我的研究計畫試圖探討中國近代國族論述如何建構想像其他所謂「半開」、「野蠻」的國家/族群以界定區別其自身的國族認同。不同於過往通常以「中國和西方對比」的詮釋典範，我的研究取徑將以更全面性的脈絡來釐清近代中國族認同論述的複雜性。因此，我選擇同樣被歐洲中心的世界觀所邊緣化的日本、韓國、越南、土耳其、印度和黑人族群，來檢視他們作為近代中國國族的「他者們」，是「如何」、「為何」以及「何時」被近代中國國族論述所再現(represent)。我的研究將取鏡後殖民研究、文化研究和認同論述研究的洞見，並且將從不同類別文獻資料（例如遊記、奏摺、報刊論文、改革/革命論述等）的中國國族認同論述中，仔細地分析近代中國的「他者們」建構現象。我的研究計畫將會從此「他者化」的脈絡中，更清楚地說明顯示近代中國國族認同建構想像的複雜過程。

The Half-Civilizeds and Barbarians: The Construction of the Half-Civilized and Barbarian Others in the Discourse of Modern Chinese National Identity The studies on the topic of modern Chinese national identity have so far focused primarily on the phenomenon of the appropriation of traditional figures or modern images, such as Yellow Emperor, Sick Man and Yellow Peril, to symbolize the collective identity of the Chinese nation. However, as many theorists, such as Edward Said, have pointed out, any identity construction, including the construction of national identity also inevitably involves the construction of “the others” in terms of continuously representing/reinterpreting the significant others. Therefore, it is indispensable to probe how “the others” were constructed in order to understand the modern Chinese national identity. On the other hand, as well known, since the late 19th century Chinese elites gradually came to recognize the hegemony of the Eurocentric world order, under which, China was classified as a half-civilized nation, or even worse, as a barbarian nation as some Chinese intellectuals pessimistically proclaimed. Indeed, many Chinese intellectuals were ambiguous about how to position China in this new world order and therefore felt deeply frustrated in defining China’s national identity. My project aims to explore, in light of aforementioned circumstances, how the discourse of modern Chinese national identity managed to construct the other half-civilized and barbarian nations/peoples in order to distinguish itself. In stead of following the old “China vis-?-vis the West” paradigm to study the Chinese national identity, my approach tries to shed new light on the complexity of the discourse of modern Chinese national identity in a more global context. Henceforth, I have chosen Japan, Korea, Vietnam, India, Turkey and the black people to look into how, why and when these “others,” which were also marginalized in the new world order, were constructed in the discourse of modern Chinese national identity. Inspired by postcolonial study, cultural studies and studies on identity discourse, my project will critically examine the othering phenomenon in modern China. By means of carefully and systematically analyzing statements about the Chinese identity with reference to these “others” in different genres, such as travelogues, memorials, journals, reformist/revolutionary discourses, my study will explicate the complicated trajectory of the discourse of the modern Chinese national identity in the context of the construction and imagination of its “others.”