《生死边缘的沉思录》与《庄子》美学比较

A Comparative Study of the Aesthetics of Devotions upon Emergent Occasions and Zhuangzi

摘要: 约翰·邓恩作为玄学派代表人物，以其独特的玄思、怪诞的意象以及深刻的思辨性闻名于世。除了大量的诗歌流传于世外，作为一名传道者，他的布道文同样精彩，《生死边缘的沉思录》是邓恩在晚年病榻之上所写的一部散文集，更是其一生思想的凝练结晶。这部作品跳出了他早年对世俗生活的书写框架，转向对个体生命终极意义与灵魂归属的探索，大有庄周齐物之气。文章从文体审美特质与哲学思想内核两个维度展开比较研究，发现二者在艺术表达层面均偏好诡谲奇崛的比喻手法与恢弘磅礴的意象体系；在思想层面，二者对生死边界的思考、对人与自然关系的认知均呈现出高度的契合性，这种跨文化的共鸣为中西美学比较提供了极具价值的研究样本。

Abstract: John Donne, as a representative of the Metaphysical School, is renowned for his unique metaphysical thinking, bizarre imagery, and profound philosophical reasoning. In addition to his numerous poems, as a preacher, his sermons are also remarkable. Devotions upon Emergent Occasions is a collection of prose written by Donne in his later years while bedridden, and it represents the crystallization of his entire life’s thoughts. This work moves beyond the framework of his early writings on worldly life, turning instead toward an exploration of the ultimate meaning of individual life and the soul’s destiny, bearing a striking resemblance to the spirit of Zhuangzi’s “Equality of All Things”. This paper conducts a comparative study from two dimensions: the aesthetic characteristics of the literary style and the philosophical core of thought. It finds that both works share a preference for strange and unconventional metaphors and grand, sweeping imagery in their artistic expression. In terms of thought, both exhibit a high degree of resonance in their reflections on the boundaries of life and death, and their understanding of the relationship between human beings and nature. This cross-cultural resonance provides a highly valuable case study for the comparison of Chinese and Western aesthetics.