喬治王朝三世社會文化之中的死亡之舞：湯姆斯•羅蘭森的英國死亡之舞

Dance of Death in the George Ⅲ English Society and Culture: Thomas Rowlandson's The English Dance of Death

林怡君(Yi-Chun Lin)

湯姆斯•羅蘭森 ； 死亡之舞 ； 優雅文化 ； 怪誕 ； 死亡 ； Thomas Rowlandson ； Dance of Death ； polite culture grotesque ； death

藝術評論

17期（2007 / 10 / 01）

113 - 144

繁體中文

湯姆斯•羅蘭森(Thomas Rowlandson, 1756~1827)是英國十八世紀中期至十九世紀初期著名的漫畫家，他的創作產量豐沛，題材巨細靡遺的涵蓋了英國當時社會百態。《英國死亡之舞》(The English Dance of Death, 1814-1816)屬於他創作生涯當中晚期的作品，雖然多數學者認爲羅蘭森生涯後期的創作不如他的壯年時期，但是《英國死亡之舞》無疑展現了作者無限的想像及創意、荒誕卻不失優雅的幽默。 英王喬治三世的時代(1760-1820)被稱爲「諷刺漫畫的黃金時期」(The Golden Age of Caricature)，在這百多年期間，文學、藝術、音樂等等各方面的創作蓬勃發展，如此一來，作家與藝術家等生產者當然也面臨了市場競爭的極大壓力，他們的作品必須更符合文化潮流、社會期待與消費者的需要，同時在藝術創作、市場導向、甚至於是道德教誨各方面都必須兼顧。本論文由《英國死亡之舞》這部作品作爲出發點，嘗試從當時社會環境、人文思想、心理層次等各方面的影饗來觀看，解釋爲什麼羅蘭森選擇這樣的創作表現方式。

Thomas Rowlandson (1756-1827) was a famous English caricaturist during the middle eighteenth to the early nineteenth century. His incredible productivity amply covered every detail of the contemporary social life. The English Dance of Death (1814-1816) belongs to the late period of his career. Although most reviews about Rowlandson considered the zenith of his career to be his thirties rather than his late years, The English Dance of Death undoubtedly showed Rowlandson's unlimited imagination and creativity, and his grotesque humor with elegance. The Reign of George Ⅲ (1760-1820) was designated the golden age of English caricature. The productions of literatures, artistic works, and music compositions rapidly increased in the free markets. At the same time, the competition among those Georgian artists was fiercer than ever. The works they created must meet the expectation of the society and the need of consumers. All aspects of aesthetics, didactic instruction, and business transactions need to be considered. The societal, cultural, and psychological forces of this specific period are all the more imperative to be examined in this essay.