重审典型论:罗施的新范畴论及其对本质主义典型论的超越  

Reexamining Prototype Theory from the Perspective of Eleanor Rosch’s New Conception of Categorization

作　　者：何辉斌[1] He Huibin(Zhejiang University,Hangzhou 310058)

机构地区：[1]浙江大学紫金港校区外语学院,310058

出　　处：《文艺理论研究》2021年第5期120-130,共11页Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art

基　　金：国家重点项目“戏剧表演和观赏的认知研究”项目编号:[17AWW006]的阶段性成果。

摘　　要：经典范畴,如人是两只脚的动物,所赖以进行判断的属性有着明显的缺陷:从横向的广度看,无法涵盖所有的成员;从纵向的丰富性看,内容过于单薄,无法充分体现这一类的特性。以这种范畴论为基础只能形成本质主义的典型论,认为典型就是普遍的本质再加上具体的特殊性,无法充分阐释典型的魅力。罗施的重要发现为:人们在日常生活中,并不以经典范畴论的抽象属性判断事物的类别,而以范畴中最有代表性的典型为参照进行分类:典型最全面地具有这个范畴的属性,如知更鸟,最丰富地具有鸟的特性--下蛋、喙、双翅、羽毛等,范畴中的其他成员的鸟的特性逐步减少,从典型到边缘形成一个特性不断减少的梯度,因此能够充分体现纵向的丰富性,也能涵盖横向的广度。以罗施的理论看,文学典型深受人们喜欢,关键在于最全面地具有这一类人的特性,从纵向和横向两个维度超越了本质主义典型论。罗施还把范畴分为三个层次:基本层次范畴,如狗,在感知方面特征最明显,是范畴体系的基础,是上位和下位范畴的典型;上位层次范畴,如哺乳动物,成员之间共享的属性很少;下位层次范畴,如猎犬,成员之间的区别比较有限。文学作品的典型,以普通意义上的人这个基本层次范畴为基础,以英雄、吝啬鬼等下位层次范畴为特色,其丰富性是典型的本质,为普遍性提供了可能。Classic categorizations, such as "human beings are animals with two feet, " have obvious defections, as they are too limited to cover the wide range of instances or not rich enough to fully represent the characteristics of the type of beings. The literary prototype theory based on the classic categorization, which regards prototypes as combinations of universal properties and specific particularities, is essentialist and incapable of exploring the true value of prototypes. It is discovered by Eleanor Rosch and other scholars that the abstract attributes are not the criteria for classification of types in everyday life;rather, the most typical prototypes are often used as models to specify the members. A case in point is the robin which has most of the attributes of birds such as laying eggs, beak, wings, feathers, but other members within this category do not equally share the same attributes, with a gradience from the prototypes to the marginal ones, hence the display of richness and extensiveness. The literary prototype based on such theory can fully represent the kind of people, transcending the essentialist theory of prototype both vertically and horizontally. Rosch also divides categories into three levels. On the basic level, the category, such as a dog, is perceptively distinct. It is the base of the whole category system and the prototype of the superordinate and subordinate levels’ categories. On the superordinate level, categories such as the animal have only a few common characteristics. Members of the category on the subordinate level, such as the retriever, have only a few differences. Literary prototypes are based on the basic concept of mankind in general sense, characterized by subordinate categories, such as the hero and the miser. Its richness underscores its universality.

关 键 词：罗施 范畴化 典型论 本质主义 

分 类 号：I0[文学—文学理论]