从辞章到考据——论姚鼐学术生涯第一次重大转折与戴震的关系

乾隆十九年(1754)前后,戴震等名流汇聚京师,汉学之潮涌动于帝都学坛。青年姚鼐受此激荡,将为学重心从此前的溺爱辞章向经史考据转移。这是姚鼐学术生涯的第一次重大转折。这次学术转折的标志是姚鼐求拜戴震为师。姚鼐约在乾隆二十年秋初结识戴震,对其学术造诣至为钦敬;秋末郑重上书,乞列门墙。尽管姚鼐的请求被拒,但此事既没有中断他与戴震之间的学术交往,更没有妨碍其学术方向的调整。姚鼐此后直到任职四库馆(1773)前夕,以戴震为学问楷模,认同并预于汉学潮流;辞章在其为学中降至末位。姚鼐的学术转向及其后来与汉学派的复杂纠葛,对其建立桐城派产生了深刻影响。

From Rhetoric to Textual Criticism: On the Relation of the First Reorientation in YAO Nai's Academic Career and DAI Zhen

Around the 19th year of Qianlong period(1754),some celebrities led by DAI Zhen gathered in Beijing.The trend of Han Learning upsurged in the Capital's academic circles.Young YAO Nai was deeply moved,and changed his focus from simply rhetoric to textual criticism of Confucian classics and history.That was the first great reorientation in YAO Nai's whole academic career,which was symbolized in YAO's formally soliciting DAI as his master.YAO acknowledged DAI in the early autumn of the 20th year of Qianlong period(1755).He venerated DAI so much that to the end of that autumn,he wrote to DAI seriously to supplicate for being accepted as DAI's disciple.YAO's supplication was declined,however,his academic communication with DAI continued,and his academic reorientation was not stopped.From then to the eve of his entering the compilation office of Si Ku Quan Shu,YAO Nai kept DAI Zhen as his academic exemplar,identified with and engaged in the Han Learning school,and the role of rhetoric in his studies was reduced to the last.YAO's academic reorientation and his later entanglements with the Han Learning school influenced deeply on his establishing Tong Cheng school.