[文学]的立场与总体性的建构--读《历史、传说与精神：中国大学百年》

The Construction of the Position and Totality of Literature: A Review of History, Legend and Spirit: One Hundred years of Chinese Universities

在陈平原先生那里，今天的中国大学不是一个既成的实体，里面还包含着诸多被压抑的可能性，以近百年的中国大学为话题，既是专业研究的延伸，有其学术发展的内在理路，也带有明显的现实关怀。其新著《历史、传说与精神―中国大学百年》（香港：三联书店，2009年）叩问了中国大学的来龙去脉，其实是关心现代中国从哪里来、往何处去这个大问题。在陈平原的大学研究中，文学始终占据着一个相当特殊的位置。这里所说的“文学”，不是指一门专业技能，或在分科体系中日益边缘化的文学，而是作为趣味，更确切地说，是作为人的基本教养的“文学”。从这个意义上说，“文学”就是“教育”。只有站在作为教养的“文学”的立场上，才可能给出大学一个总体性的前景，才可能打通百年中国大学的气脉。

Professor Chen Pingyuan states that today's university in China is not a fixed entity; instead， it still has many constrained possibilities. His research on Chinese universities with a history of nearly one hundred years is not only an extension of professional research， but also has its inner logic of academic development and shows concern for reality. In his latest book， History， Legend and Spirit: One Hundred Years of Chinese Universities (Hong Kong: Joint Publishing Co.， 2009)， Chen's inquiry of the history of Chinese universities in the last one hundred years actually focuses on the significant issue of the origination and destination of China. In his study of Chinese universities， literature takes a particularly special position. The ＂literature＂ here does not refer to a special kill or a peripheral discipline in current education system; it is a taste. To be precise， it is a kind of basic education for everyone. In this sense， ＂literature＂ is ＂education＂. Only from the standpoint of ＂literature＂ as a way of education， could Chinese universities be given a total perspective and developed.