漢魏詩における寓意的自然描寫 : 曹植｢吁嗟篇｣を中心に

Abstract

Ts'ao Chih's (192-232) Yueh-fu poem “Yü-chieh P'ien”, written in his later years, is an allegorical poem which describes the poet's misfortunes in those years in terms of “drifting tumbleweeds” (転蓬). As an allegorical poem it belongs to a relatively early period. This essay traces the development of the allegorical mode of expression in poetry in the Han and Wei dynasties cluminating in the “Yü-chieh P'ien” and analyzes the characteristics of that mode of expression. The first thing to be noticed about the allegorical mode is the description of nature at the start of the poem. This description serves the function of leading the reader into following descriptions of human beings, and of giving the reader a hint beforehand of the content of the entire poem. In fact, this is a technique that derives from the hsing 興 mode of the Shih Ching 詩経. It must be noted, however, that the hsing-like mode in Han and Wei poetry was already a form of rhetoric that clearly was used consciously, a fact that changes its nature. Allegorical poetry is an end-point of that change. The words “allegorical poetry” are used here to signify poetry in which nature has been artificially reconstructed with the intention of giving expression to a person. That is, “allegorical poetry” operates by means of the intentional anthropomorphizing of nature. This mode of expression, in which nature is drawn close to human beings and interpreted in human terms, occured surprisingly early; poetry in which nature is depicted as nature(L e., pure lyric poetry) came considerably later. Until then it was more usual for nature to be depicted in human terms, a process that eventually culminated in allegory. What are the characteristics of the allegorical mode of expression in poetry? Most importantly, it is a generalized mode, and as such is unsuited to the expression of personal ideas. On the other hand, since it establishes a basis common to poet and audience, its operation guarantees a shared feeling of solidarity. This is related to the fact that poetry that use allegori'cal description of nature contains by and large very Iittle sense of the individual, but is rather a poetry that can be shared by a group. Allegorical poetry skilful use is made of this characteristic. That is, in allegorical poetry, the individual being fitted into an already recognized universal framework and generalized, the subtle nuances of individuality cannot but be eliminated. Instead, this universal mode creates a sense of actuality that holds true for the whole “Yü-chieh P'ien”. What distinguishes the “Yü-chieh P'ien” from other allegorical poetry is the fact that it carries the allegory to the farthest possible point.