孟子论牛羊之别新解

《孟子·梁惠王》所记载的一个故事中的牛与羊的区别 ,可以用结构主义符号学的方法来思考。在这个故事中 ,齐宣王用“以羊易牛”的策略解决了既不能杀牛又不能废衅钟之礼的两难抉择。从结构主义符号学的角度来看 ,这里的牛羊之别 ,是经验中的有生命的动物牛与语言中的无生命的羊概念之间的区别。齐宣王以羊易牛的实质 ,是用一个没有生命的羊概念替换了一头有生命的动物牛。牛羊之别代表了经验和语言的区别 ,这正是中国传统哲学与西方后现代哲学的根本区别。

Fresh New Interpretation on Mencius' Differentiation between the Ox and the Sheep

From the perspective of the structuralist semiotics, the present paper aims to interpret the differences between the ox and the sheep in the story told in Mencius 1A7. In the story, King Xuan of the Qi State resolves the dilemma of not killing the ox for the ritual and still offering the sacrifice at the same time. In line with the structuralist semiotics, the differences between the two are those between the animal ox with life and the word sheep without life. That King Xuan exchanges a sheep for an ox is actually to exchange a word for an animal. Their differences represent those between experience and language, and that is the very differences between traditional Chinese philosophy and the western post-modern philosophy.