Abstract：In the summer of 1908, Wang Guowei compiled A Collection of Ci by Twenty Masters in the Tang and the Five Dynasties, which, was rarely known at that time. A Collection of Ci by Two Lords in the Southern Tang Dynasty is now being collected in the National Library of China, while the pieces written by the other nineteen masters are now being collected in the Sichuan Provincial Library. In addition, Wang Jingan’s Hand-writtenCopy of Ci and Qu Bibliography in the Sichuan Provincial Library is also a newly discovered hand-written manuscript by Wang Guowei. Based on the manuscripts of these hand-written manuscripts, together with the Ci books copied and proofread by Wang Guowei collected in the Toyo Bunko, we can see that Wang Guowei’s approach to Ci studies is featured with a strong philological tendency, which is quite different from his method of emphasizing the chanting appreciation of the text as can be seen in his Poetic Remarks on the Human World.As early as the time when Wang Guowei was immersed in studying the Western philosophers, he had already shown his fascination with Ci from the Tang and the Five Dynasties. A Collection of Ci by Twenty Masters in the Tangand the Five Dynasties preluded Wang Guowei’s series of Ci studies, and initiated his practice of collating Ci books. Although this book is quite innovative, it still has some problems to be addressed. Wang Guowei attempted to cover this up when he was revising this work. The revisions in the book should also be put under scrutiny for most of them not only contradict the classics but also do not conform to the principles of collation. Wang Guowei invited Wu Changshou to collate the collection. Wu Changshou suggested that they should adopt the versions complied by scholars from the Yuan Dynasty rather than those from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Later, at the invitation of Luo Zhenyu and Shen Zongji to publish the Chenfeng Pavilion Series, Wang Guowei recompiled A Collection of Ci by Two Lords in the Southern Tang Dynasty with references to the different versions of A Collection of Ci by Ten Masters which he borrowed from Wu Changshou, including the Jigu Pavilion version, Nan Ci version and Hou Wencan’s version.From 1909 to 1912, Wang Guowei continued to collate Ci books. These books are mainly preserved in the current Toyo Bunko, most of them being the collations of the Jigu Pavilion version of Ci Collection by Six Masters in the Song Dynasty. Wang Guowei discarded the malpractices in the early collation methods of Ci books, and attempted to borrow from the Qianjia School and other scholars of the time their collation principles, methods and experiences, which brought him many fruitful achievements. He attached great importance to tracing back to the origins of the versions of Ci books, and used ancient and refined rare versions as the master copies and reference copies. Wang Guowei adopted the “alignment method” and “inference method” to proofread the errors and variant texts, and added the sources in detail. He supplemented and judged the Ci poems which were cross-referenced by referring to the Ci collection, notes and other documents, and occasionally depended on the rhythms to collate the Ci poems. For some Ci books, he even collated them for many times. A Collection of Ci by Two Lords in the Southern Tang Dynasty and Hou Cun Bie Diao collected in the Chenfeng Pavilion Series were compiled and published by Wang Guowei, and their stylish layout was quite innovative with scientific preciseness.From his earlier artistic evaluation of Ci to the application of the approaches to classics and history in Ci studies, Wang Guowei’s academic transformation embodied a profound cultural psychology and value orientation. Wang Guowei borrowed from the textology of the Qing Dynasty the successful experiences of making versions, collations and collections and constantly integrated Western positivism, scientific spirit and methods at the same time, gradually developing a collation paradigm for Ci books with “seeking for truth” and “science” as the ultimate goal. Wang Guowei takes the restoration of the original “truth” of the classics as the ultimate goal of collation. One is to restore the classics to their original versions when they were finalized or initially published, which implies “seeking for the original truth”. More importantly, another goal is to search for the meanings originally intended by the authors by means of reexamining different texts and questionable points, which implies “seeking for the authentic truth”. The key to integrating “seeking for the original truth” and “seeking for the authentic truth” lies in the degree of balance between the two, which again depends upon a prudent and scientific mode of thinking. However, it is no easy job to strike a balance between the two, and Wang Guowei prefers “seeking for the authentic truth”. Therefore, to a certain extent, both Wang Guowei’s subjective revisions that failed to conform to the principles of collation at the early stage and his revisions of Ci after a close investigation of its “meaning” at the later stage can be regarded as his unique understandings in the process of “seeking for the authentic truth”.The collation of Ci books was just one focus in Wang Guowei’s diversified academic research fields, and was initiated at the early stage of his academic career. However, its internal rationale affects the basic style and academic method of Wang Guowei’s subsequent Sinology research.
梁帅. 王国维治词理路的文献学转型与进路[J]. 浙江大学学报(人文社会科学版), 2023, 53(4): 72-87.
Liang Shuai. Philological Transformation and Approach of Wang Guowei’s Ci Studies: The Collation and Collection of Ci Books. JOURNAL OF ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY, 2023, 53(4): 72-87.
2023, Vol. 53 
