Controlling, coaxing and love : domestic power dynamics and ideal patriarchal family in Liaozhai Zhiyi = 控制、誘哄與愛 : 《聊齋誌異》中的妻妾權力關係與理想父權制家庭

Abstract

Among the 491 chapters of "Liaozhai Zhiyi," there are more than 150 stories dedicated to depicting the order within the family. However, unlike secular novels such as "Dream of the Red Chamber" or caizijiaren romances such as "Pingshan Lengyan"in Ming and Qing dynasties, "Liaozhai" focuses not on the intricate ethical relationships within a large clan, nor on the fantastical world against the backdrop of a prestigious household. Instead, its gaze is cast upon the small family unit consisted of a husband, wife, and concubines and the social order carried behind the inter-relationships of these individuals. The wife-concubine relationships stem from the authors’ meticulous observation of real-life family, resulting in a delicate depiction with originality, while also conveying the author’s moral commitment to the family order. Upon classifying and summarizing these stories, it is apparent that the author consciously employs certain character relationship models and narrative models to describe and guide the interaction patterns between wives and concubines within the family, supplemented by some archetypal female character images. Through the power dynamics between wives and concubines and the creation of typical female characters in these short vernacular texts, Pu Songling(1640-1715) expresses his rethinking of the patriarchal family system and proposes ways to amend it, thereby preserving its longevity. This report will provide examples from multiple texts about domestic life in "Liaozhai", conduct an in-depth close reading of them, and analyze how they reconstruct the ideal power structures between wives and concubines through models of "control", "coax", and "love". Furthermore, it will explore how male literati, represented by Pu Songling, respond to and reshape the changing gender order within the family in his time. (272 words)

在《聊齋誌異》的491個篇章中，有多達一百五十餘篇故事致力於描寫家庭內部的日常生活秩序；不過與《紅樓夢》等明清世情小說或《平山冷燕》等才子佳人小說不同，《聊齋》的著眼點既不在龐大宗族體系中複雜的倫理關係，亦不是以顯赫門第為背景的浪漫主義的夢幻世界，而是將視野投射在夫、妻與妾組成的小家庭及其所承載的社會秩序。妻妾之間的女性關係既本於作者對現實中家庭生活的細緻觀察，從而被描寫得細膩動人不失新意，而又充滿了作者本人對家庭秩序理當如何的道德寄託。 對這些故事進行分類歸納，會發現作者有意識地運用一些人物關係模型和敘事模型，來描述與指導家庭中妻妾的相處模式，並補綴以一些被典型化的人物形象。而通過這些短篇文言文本中對妻妾之間權力關係的架構與典型女性人物的塑造，蒲松齡（1640-1715）表達了他對父權制度家庭的重新思考，並提出了修補的方式，以維護其長久的生命力。 本報告將會例舉《聊齋》中多篇有關家庭的文本，對其進行深入的細讀，進而剖析它們如何通過“控制”、“誘哄”與“愛”等模型來重構自己理想的妻妾權力關係，並進一步探討以蒲松齡為代表的清初男性文人如何回應與重塑應時代而變動的家庭內部性別秩序。