从“滋味”到“知味”：中国饮食文化的哲学意蕴与社会表达

From “Taste” to “Aroma”: The Implications and Social Expression of Chinese Culinary Culture

摘要: 《史记·郦生陆贾列传》中“民人以食为天”，充分说明了自古以来饮食对中华民族的重要性。饮食文化具有深远的哲学意蕴，天人合一、阴阳五行、调和之美垒下了饮食文化的基石；而与饮食文化相结合的礼仪活动则揭示了中国人在饮食活动中如何建构伦理秩序、社会身份与人际关系。本文将采用文化哲学与社会学交叉的方法，构建“滋味–知味–味外之旨”的分析框架，依次探究奠定饮食文化基石的哲学观念，作为社会展演的饮食活动所展示的伦理纲常，以及全球化背景下饮食文化的传承与挑战。本研究旨在揭示中国饮食文化作为“味”与“道”的统一体，既是哲学思想的生活化实践，也是社会关系的充分表达，从而为理解中国饮食文化社会化提供一个独特的切入点。

Abstract: The phrase “For the common people, food is heaven” from the Biographies of Li Sheng and Lu Jia in the Records of the Grand Historian vividly illustrates the profound significance of food in Chinese culture since ancient times. Culinary traditions possess deep philosophical connotations, with concepts such as the unity of heaven and humanity, yin-yang and the five elements, and the beauty of harmony forming the bedrock of this culture. Moreover, the ritualistic practices intertwined with culinary traditions reveal how the Chinese construct ethical order, social identity, and interpersonal relationships through dining activities. This paper adopts an interdisciplinary approach blending cultural philosophy and sociology to construct an analytical framework of “taste—aroma—the meaning beyond flavour.” It successively explores the philosophical concepts underpinning culinary culture, the ethical norms manifested in food-related activities as social performances, and the preservation and challenges of culinary culture in the context of globalisation. This study aims to reveal how Chinese culinary culture, as a unity of “flavour” and “Dao,” constitutes both the lived practice of philosophical thought and the full expression of social relations, thereby offering a unique entry point for understanding the socialisation of Chinese culinary culture.