Title: 唐代文学中的“头颅”叙事 = The "Head" narration in Tang dynasty literature
Abstract: Heads, as the symbol of essential vitality, have played a significant role in various aspects of human society such as religion, agriculture, politics, and more throughout history."Head Narration", as defined by the author, refers to narrative works in Classical Chinese Literature that centre around heads or their variations such as skulls when developing plots or portraying characters and feature unexpected characteristics.This paper will focus on discussing the "Head" Narration in Tang Dynasty Literature, aiming to categorize, analyze and conclude the characteristics of the works relating to their themes and narrative techniques.To begin with, the paper thoroughly examines the origin, development, and variation of the "Head" narration in the Classic of Mountains and Seas 山海经, as well as in the Han, Wei, and Six Dynasties Literature, so as to trace back the source and root of different "Head" narrations in Tang literature.Next, the paper focuses on examining the "Head" narration in Tang literature belonging to the themes of politics and animals respectively.To study the "Head" narrations belonging to the political theme, the paper highlights their effectiveness in serving as a supplementary account to the historical records, by analyzing how their authors would portray the brutal impact of various political incidents through the vivid writing of terrifying "head" narratives.And to study the "Head" narrations belonging to the animal theme, the paper emphasizes their morally educational purposes, discussing how the authors would transmit Buddhist values and beliefs such as abstaining from killing and sexual conduct through the storytelling of animals appealing with heads or animals transforming into human with skulls.Finally, the paper looks into the narrative techniques and the impact of the "Head" narration in Tang literature.The paper explores the narrative function of the image of "heads" from three aspects: structuring the narratives, portraying the characters, and conveying the moral values.And the paper ends with an analysis of the "Head" narration in Journey to the West 西游记 which is selected as one of the representatives of the "Head" narration in post-Tang literature. 1 绪论 一、 研究动机 "头颅"一物,向来令人望而生畏。纵览中国古典文学中"头颅"之出场,不论 是《三王墓》中的"汤镬煮首" ,还是《西游记》 "车迟国斗法"中的"砍头法术" ,亦 或《吴越春秋》中伍子胥的"悬头南门"以观破吴,读者初读之下,往往只作乍舌、 惊惧之反应,以为"头颅"一物无非是为了增添故事诡谲神异的色彩。然而,如果我 们能以更超然冷静的态度去思考"头颅" ,也许就能在这些频频"惊现"中,抽丝剥茧 以理解古人关乎"头颅"的复杂情感,并解读文学作品中更多关于"头颅"的秘密与 意涵。 相较今人论及"头颅"之惧骇,古人最早对于"头颅"的情感,大体可追溯至骨人面纹以及"X 光式"人像,恰是骨骼精灵崇拜及中国古代萨满式文明的遗证。 2 相信 灵魂驻居头骨,是骨骼精灵崇拜更具体发展为头颅/头骨崇拜的关键。民族史学者郭净 即试以典籍记载来补充、佐证这一古老的观念:老子《道德经》 "天门开阖"与汉代纬 书《春秋元命苞》中"头者,神所居"的思想,恰是对头颅/头骨崇拜的认定与引申--在人浑身上下那么多器官,那么多骨头之中,灵魂只有驻居头骨,才能借天门自由 "开阖" ,而飘然"出窍"来去。 3 金汉波更从功能性的角度考量,将头颅崇拜进一步 解释为远古先民基于各种社会需求而对于人头骨作出的独特处理。