장자(莊子) 「덕충부(德充符)」편의 정(情) 개념에 대한 새로운 해석

Abstract

In this essay, I critically examine the interpretation of the concept of qing (情) that appears in the fifth chapter (“The Sign of Virtue Complete”) of the Zhuangzi as emotions, and argue that the concept of qing in that chapter rather means the characteristic features of the human beings, primarily constituted by the judgments of right and wrong (shifei 是非) and the emotions of liking and disliking (haowu 好惡). The judgments of right and wrong literally refer to the acts of judging whether the thoughts, perspectives, or theories of one’s own or others’ are right or wrong, and such judgments are conceptually distinguished from the emotions such as liking, disliking, joy, anger, sadness, and pleasure. In Zhuangzi’s view, though, human beings are creatures characterized by the following features, just like the monkeys in the “three in the morning” anecdote from the second chapter (“Discussion on Making All Things Equal”) of the Zhuangzi: 1) misguided by inappropriate liking and disliking that fail to register the reality properly, human beings often make wrong judgments about and show inappropriate affective responses to various things; 2) based on self-consciousness and self-love, human beings tend to feel a strong attachment and hold fast to their own opinions, while cherishing enmity against their opponents; 3) self-conceited about their petty wisdom or limited virtues, human beings often look down upon others and feel jealous of those who excel themselves. In the chapter “The Sign of Virtue Complete,” Zhuangzi suggests the possibility of the existence of sages who have shed the negative characteristics of the human beings in response to Hui Shi’s 惠施 question, “How could there be human beings, by definition, who lack the characteristics of the human beings?” As Zhuangzi sees it, sages are liberated from the bonds of inappropriate liking and disliking and other emotions through their correct understanding of the reality, and they are also free from the concept of the self, which is the ultimate source of perverted self-love, self-conceitedness, and jealousy toward others.