「分離」與「統一」的多元辯證: 章太炎聯省自治思想的特質

This article is not about the history of the provincial self-rule of the 1920s or the reasons that led to a demand for provincial self-rule in the early Republican period. Rather, it examines the thought of Zhang Taiyan who, paradoxically, strongly supported provincial self-rule despite being a major leader of the young Chinese Republic. To explain this paradox, this article focuses on Zhang’s unique approach toward autonomy and unification, whereby the two opposite political structures are understood as ineluctably connected and mutually dependent.

Zhang’s unique approach toward autonomy and unification, the authors argue, is based on his dialectical thinking in which he sees individuals and communities, provinces and nation, and different nations as parts of an organic totality in search of self-awareness and self-realization. As such, human organizations—including families, lineages, towns, cities, nation-states, and international organizations—exist to help individuals achieve self-fulfilment. They are “dependent existences” (jiayou) that serve the “substantive existences” (zhenyou) of individuals. And yet, individuals will never be able to fully achieve self-fulfilment unless they become members of an organization. Hence, the “substantive existence” relies on the “dependent existence” and a low level of human organization relies on a higher level of human organization.

This dialectics between “substantive existence” and “dependent existence” not only forms the basis of Zhang’s political philosophy, but also shapes his views on the importance of provincial self-rule, the nature of nation-state, the contribution of Pan-Asianism, and the limits of anarchism. More importantly, it explains why Zhang constantly switched between supporting the unification of China and supporting the autonomy of individuals.