Abstract
清初雜劇上承明雜劇「文人化」、「案頭化」的發展趨勢,復以「抒情化」為重要特徵。嵇永仁(1637-1676)作為「三藩之亂」的死難者,其獄中創作的《續離騷》雜劇往往被置於「抒懷寫憤」的視角討論。相對而言,作為構成文本意義重要環節之讀者層,並未受到足夠的重視。本文在勾稽其獄中經驗的基礎上,以「忠」與「怨」為重心,重新探討嵇永仁獄中所作詩歌及《續離騷》的抒情議題。進而考察當時後世讀者之閱讀實踐,反思作者之情志如何為人所感知、接受和詮釋。最後將嘗試論證,對於建構文人戲曲的「抒情性」,相對於作者和文本,讀者一端所具有的重要地位和意義。本文不僅試圖重構嵇永仁獄中創作的生成語境,更嘗試探問,其生命處境是否(或如何)可能成為以「抒懷寫憤」視角詮釋《續離騷》的歷史條件和邏輯基礎,因而亦涉及對戲曲研究方法的反思。從讀者角度重新思考及問題化嵇永仁《續離騷》及其接受,將對我們審視清初雜劇的特質,乃至探討文人戲曲和其他敘事性文類的「抒情性」帶來一定的啟發。
Zaju drama in the early Qing dynasty, known for its strong lyricism, was deeply influenced by the Chinese poetic tradition and the Ming Zaju. The play Xu lisao by Ji Yongren (1637-1676), a victim of the "Revolt of the three feudatories," is a good case in point. Naturally, scholars have tended to focus on the relationship between the author and the text with a view to examining the author's personal feelings and emotions. The role of readers has escaped scholarly attention. In this article, by reconstructing Ji's experience in prison, I first re-examine the lyricism of his poems and Xu lisao which he wrote in prison, with a focus on the two seemingly conflicting yet closely related emotional types, namely, "loyalty" (zhong) and "resentment" (yuan). I then examine the reading practices of contemporary and subsequent readers of Ji's poems and dramas and show how Ji's emotions were perceived, received, and interpreted by his readers. Above all, I attempt to demonstrate that, in addition to the author and the text, the reader also played a pivotal role in the construction of the lyricism of literati drama. As such, this article not only sheds light on how the life experience of the playwright might allow for the subsequent interpretations of Xu lisao from a lyrical perspective but also makes a methodological contribution in the study of classical Chinese drama. More broadly, studying Ji's plays from the perspective of readers opens a window into the nature of Zaju in the early Qing as well as the lyricism of literati dramas and other narratives in premodern China.
Zaju drama in the early Qing dynasty, known for its strong lyricism, was deeply influenced by the Chinese poetic tradition and the Ming Zaju. The play Xu lisao by Ji Yongren (1637-1676), a victim of the "Revolt of the three feudatories," is a good case in point. Naturally, scholars have tended to focus on the relationship between the author and the text with a view to examining the author's personal feelings and emotions. The role of readers has escaped scholarly attention. In this article, by reconstructing Ji's experience in prison, I first re-examine the lyricism of his poems and Xu lisao which he wrote in prison, with a focus on the two seemingly conflicting yet closely related emotional types, namely, "loyalty" (zhong) and "resentment" (yuan). I then examine the reading practices of contemporary and subsequent readers of Ji's poems and dramas and show how Ji's emotions were perceived, received, and interpreted by his readers. Above all, I attempt to demonstrate that, in addition to the author and the text, the reader also played a pivotal role in the construction of the lyricism of literati drama. As such, this article not only sheds light on how the life experience of the playwright might allow for the subsequent interpretations of Xu lisao from a lyrical perspective but also makes a methodological contribution in the study of classical Chinese drama. More broadly, studying Ji's plays from the perspective of readers opens a window into the nature of Zaju in the early Qing as well as the lyricism of literati dramas and other narratives in premodern China.
Translated title of the contribution | The Lyricism and Reception of Ji Yongren’s Prison Writings: The Construction of Lyricism in Early Qing Zaju Drama |
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Original language | Chinese (Traditional) |
Pages (from-to) | 209-264 |
Number of pages | 55 |
Journal | 臺大中文學報 |
Issue number | 78 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Sept 2022 |
User-Defined Keywords
- 清初雜劇
- 文人戲曲
- 抒情性
- 接受
- 《續離騷》
- early Qing Zaju drama
- literati drama
- lyricism
- reception
- Xu lisao