如是语,方为秦钟——《红楼梦》第十六回各版本对秦钟之死不同处理的探讨

《红楼梦》第十六回末关于秦钟之死的异文众多,且相去较远,只有早期版本中秦钟还魂并劝宝玉立志功名的处理最为妥善,最贴近作者本意.早期版本中秦钟遗言劝宝玉相对于前文显突兀,但并不矛盾,这样的处理中带有作者的深意.秦钟这个角色在《红楼梦》中是一个功能性重于情节性的人物,其临终遗言中“悔迟之恨”的设置关乎全文要旨.《红楼梦》有将宝玉、秦钟二人合一的倾向,秦钟临死悔悟是作者对宝玉的讽刺和惋惜,也是作者本人忏悔之情的表露.从《红楼梦》的对称性上看,这种设置符合全文结构特征,更贴近作者本意.

Qin Zhong Should Be Interpreted in this Way——An discussion of various treatments of the death of Qin Zhong in different versions of A Dream in Red Mansions

There are many quite different versions about the death of Qin Zhong in chapter 16 in A Dream in Red Mansions and not all of them are wrote by the author himself. Only the treatment that Qin Zhong revives and persuades Baoyu to aspire for fame can be seen as a proper intention and close to the author＇s original idea, while the other versions are modifications of later generations. The persuasion plot seems sudden and surprising but not contradictory, with a deep implication of the author containing in it. As a personage, the importance of Qin Zhong lies in his regret which represents the author＇s confession and relates to the main idea of the text. A Dream in Red Mansions tends to combine Baoyu and Qin Zhong together and the regret of the dying Qin Zhong shows the satire and pity of the author toward Baoyu. In consideration of the symmetry of this novel, the last words of Qin Zhong conform to the structure of the novel and press close to the intention of the author. Qin Zhong is a character who is important in function rather than in plot, which does not mean that this character is dispensable.