近代思想文化语境中的醒狮形象

由睡狮而醒狮,是晚清民族主义思潮勃兴期民族精神的一个文学象征,其形成过程本身,就是一个中西文化交汇融合,而由中国知识分子想象虚构历史生成物。它既不同于中国传统的狮子形象,也有别于一般西方的狮子形象,它既是启蒙者又是觉醒者,既具有以武力为基础的强大统治力,又有威而不猛的温和威慑力。

The Awaken Lion Image in Modern Cultural Context

A literary symbol for the national spirit in Late-Qing period is the image transformation from sleeping lion to awaken lion, of which the process itself is the blending of Western and Chinese cultures. As a product of a fictional history imagined by Chinese intellectuals, it differs both from the lion image in traditional Chinese culture and that of Western world. It is the enlightener and awakener, have both the strong power of governing based on force and the mighty yet gentle power of deterring.