The Search for Material Civilization: Kang Youwei's Journey to the West

康有為的西方物質文明之旅

10.6163/tjeas.2008.5(1)33

汪榮祖(Young-Tsu Wong)

康有為 ； 物質文明 ； 物質救國 ； 人類共同歸宿 ； Kang Youwei ； material civilization ； national salvation ； human destiny

臺灣東亞文明研究學刊

5卷1期（2008 / 06 / 01）

33 - 59

英文

本文主要探討康有為之追求西方近代物質文明，並認為是救治中國積弱的不二之道。他於廿世紀初在歐美長期漫遊，使他親眼目睹近代物質文明的富麗，以及強國之根本所在。他將在義大利、法蘭西、英吉利、德意志、美利堅、墨西哥等國的見聞書之於遊記，並將感受與方案寫成物質救國論，為本文能夠仔細觀察康氏旅行細節及其思路設想，提供不可或缺的材料。大略言之，他見到的是一富盛的新世界，對海權關切到一國的富強興盛，印象尤其深刻。當他親見歐美國家物質文明如是之興隆，積弱的中國需要追求物質文明不僅緊迫，而且必須努力以赴。然而康氏之追求物質文明並未放棄他素具的政治改革抱負與世界大同的理想。他一貫認為，近代文明乃人類共同的命運，他急迫地呼籲中國須在物質文明的道路上迎頭追趕，也是通向世界大同的必要步驟。

This paper deals with Kang Youwei's search for modern material civilization, which he believed was the ”prescription” for China's weakness and poverty. The extensive tour he made to the West confirmed the validity of his prescription. He detailed in his travel notes what he had seen in Italy, France, Britain, Germany, America, Mexico, etc. In general, he saw a prosperous new world of material civilization, and was deeply impressed by the importance of sea power. His reflections on the grand tour were written into wuzhi jiuguo lun (Essay on national salvation through material construction), which provides with the indispensable information for this study. After having seen how advanced the modern world of material civilization in Europe and America was, Kang's pleas for change at the time when China appeared so backward became all the more earnest and urgent. But in his cry for ”material civilization,” he abandoned neither his political reforms nor his utopian vision. As always, he believed that modernity was the common destination for all humankind, and his impassioned calling for China to follow the course of material civilization was merely a necessary step to universal peace or the utopia of all nations.

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