19C말 일본 대학의 학과 편제와 國學ㆍ漢學ㆍ東洋學의 위상

Abstract

The University of Tokyo, founded in 1877, was composed of 4 colleges. One of them was the college of literature. It was composed of 2 departments: the first being ‘History⁃ Philosophy⁃Political Science’, the second ‘Japanese Literature’. The former was the names of the modern studies which are still in use. Though the department was split into two in 1885, most of the curriculum of Chinese Department was inherent in Japanese Studies. Therefore, the composition of Japanese and Chinese Studies was a sheer representation of Japan. The characteristic was maintained after the establishment of Liberal Arts College at Imperial University after 1886. The very existence of the Department of Japanese and Chinese Studies in the University of Tokyo had a significant influence on the academic concept of its department system. Subjects like “Indo-China Philosophy” was included in the lecture since the independence of the Department of Philosophy in 1881, and the curriculum was divided into two parts: Oriental Philosophy, Western Philosophy. Here, the term “Oriental” does not include Japan. The concept of “Oriental Philosophy” was of the same kin as the offering of “Oriental History as Foreign History”. The Oriental Studies should always include national study of Japan in it. The national study of Japan symbolized by the Department of Japanese and Chinese Studies was the one that did not discern Japan and the Orient (or China). In other words, Japan represented by the Japanese and Chinese Studies was perceived to be most oriental in itself. Judging from the name of the departments, the modernization of Japanese Studies seems to have been successful by introducing the departments of Japanese literature and national history. Above all, they now gained self-referring names of Japanese Literature and National History getting out of the stage where they were referred in a combined entity of Japanese and Chinese. It is also noteworthy that the terms often used for describing subjects such as “Japan-China” and “Japanese and Chinese” under the departments of Japanese Studies or Chinese Studies in the University of Tokyo did not appear any more. This clearly discerned the affiliation of “Japan” and “China” respectively. The Imperial University of Japan was established in March 1886 and along with it the Department of Linguistics was first set up. It was Chamberlain (Basil Hall Chamberlain, 1850~1935) who led the establishment of the Department of Linguistics. Ueda Kazutoshi who was taught by Chamberlain is particularly worthwhile to take notice of. It was none other than him who established modern Japanese Studies independent from its traditional study of Japanese classics and facilitated the development of the so-called Japanese style Oriental Studies. From the beginning, Oriental Studies in Europe was based on the knowledge of the objects outside of oneself, namely the objectified system of knowledge. Accepting the concept by the orient meant that the orient perceived themselves as an objectified subject. In order to escape from this queer paradox, the subject, namely the orient, should be defined properly as an object in the first place. In other words, the subject itself which belongs to the orient must not be included in the study of orient. In the case of Japan who introduced Oriental Studies for the first time in East Asia should have excluded Japan from the objects of study. To put it differently, the national study of Japan should be an implicit premise in formulating oriental studies.