汉斯 · 布鲁门伯格 (Hans Blumenberg)《神话研究》要点笔记
文 / 冯小旦
原先是用英文作的笔记，现在再来添加一些中文，我自己也能显然感觉到现在已经 lose grasping 很多论证的细节和妙处，欢迎反馈和意见
要点 Quotes
Blumenberg’s definition of Angst in relation to the “absolutism of reality” （布鲁门伯格对于 Angst 的定义以及其与 “绝对现实 / 现实绝对主义” 的关系）
[…] for any length of time it would produce the mental state that Blumenberg calls Angst, which is normally translated as “anxiety” but would be better rendered by the psychiatrist’s paraphrase, “intense fear or dread lacking an unambiguous cause or a specific threat” ; and the resulting behavior would be panic, paralysis, or both. (Translator’s Introduction) 强调一个特定、清晰的威胁对象的缺失，所造成的强烈的恐惧
The emphasis on the “practical” or “biological” “function” aspect of anxiety （对于 anxiety 的实际层面、生物层面、以及功能层面的强调）
“Thus man's uniqueness is not in something that he is (in his"essence" or nature, as, for example, the zoon politikon or the animal symbolicum) but in what he does in order to deal with the problem of what he is in order to make himself biologically viable.” 强调人的特殊性并不在于一种存在的 “本质”，而在于他为了维持其个体存在的时候所作出的反应
Going from “anxiety” to “fear” in the comparative context with Kurt Goldstein （来自于我自己的一个有趣的角度：与 Kurt Goldstein 对比视角下的 anxiety 和 fear）
The generalized excitement and suspense must always be reduced, again, to the assessment of specific factors. Put differently specifically in the language of the neurologist Kurt Goldstein this means that anxiety must again and again be rationalized into fear, both in the history of mankind and in that of the individual. 用 KG 的话来说，anxiety 必须不断地经由理性的过程，而成为具有清晰性投射对象的 fear，不论是从个体还是人类历史进程来说，在我看来 KG 更侧重于这一过程能够对人类发现未知造成的探索推动力，而不在于一种克服和 reducing
Drawing difference from Freud’s depiction of anxiety, on account of its expectation, realistic nature and etc. （放在佛洛依德的框架下来看）
In spite of its biological function in separation and transition situations where magnitudes of danger are not predefined, anxiety is never realistic. It does not first become pathological as a phenomenon of man's recent history; it is pathological. Consequently we don't learn anything new when Freud says that anxiety becomes neurotic as a result of its infantile relationship to danger, since, in anxiety, reactions are produced that are no longer appropriate to the situation of mature individuals. 那么上述论点显然与佛洛依德背道而驰，佛洛依德显然并不会 pro anxiety 作为一种推动力，而认为 anxiety 是一种 pre-mature 的 neurotic reaction，这里不展开
On metaphor generation
Panic and paralysis, as the two extremes of anxiety behavior, are dissolved by the appearance of calculable magnitudes to deal with and regulated ways of dealing with them, even if the results of the magical and ritual quid pro quo now and then make a mockery of the intention of gaining the favor of the powers on behalf of man.
Blumenberg refers “absolutism of reality” as the situation as “man come close to not having control of the conditions of its existence and more importantly believes that he simply lacks control of them. “现实绝对主义” 是布鲁门伯格由篇首提出的一个核心概念，他之后的讨论都是在此基础上展开的。他将其定义为这样一种情形：人对于现下的自身存在的处境失去控制，并相信自己对其无力控制的情形。Angst- tracing back to our ancestors who have come close to not having control of their exsistential conditions, if the limiting case (the previous situation not delt with) happens -> then Angst appears. 当这种情形发生了，并且应对缺失，Angst 就产生了。他认为追溯到（在一种想象中的）我们的先祖，曾在最原始的探索大地与开拓领土的过程中，无限濒临这种对自身存在的境况失控的情形—无论是所面临的未知，还是自身在未知面前的彻底暴露。当这种情形未能被解决，焦虑便产生了。这一与众多哲学家都相似的、对焦虑中规中矩的定义，并没有限制作者在之后更为精彩的论述。
Myth serves the role to over come the Angst that’s producced by this “lack of biological adptive instincts” of man. 人类在应对 “现实绝对主义” 时所呈现出的，生物意义上的本能缺陷，而神话的角色就是填补和应对这一情况。神话的角色（在 enlightment 之前）就是用以对抗此种焦虑。布鲁门伯格的人类学视角，将此种焦虑的产生归因于人类本能中的一种缺陷，而将其以神话的形式 “合理化”，将焦虑指向一个特定的对象、人（神）格化的目标 - 至少是可以被叙述和应对的。“Rationalizing” aims to transform Angst into fear- to a specific agent, personalized target – at least is addreassable and could be delt with. After that, according to Blumberg, in the early stage the power is often separated, which means the power we rationalized to delt with is often in plural form. 通常在早期，这种神话的力量（亦即投射对象）通常是不止一个的，多神的。Since Angst is already to some extent a “all encompassing threat”. The Olympus Zeus, Perseus and Hercules example – namely polytheistic illustrates this point of “speration of power”, in order to prevent the “supereme god”- which is the “turningback” to the Angst situation. 我认为这是由于 Angst 本来就是由于一个蒙昧状态的、弥散性的威胁所产生的，多神崇拜使得这种弥散性的威胁得以分散，而“最高的神” 并未出现，因为在这一阶段需要担心的是会否回到 Angst 的状态，因此任何形式的一元、至高、囊括性的东西都不会在这最初阶段产生。作者举了一些神话实例，这里不展开，但原文都非常具体、生动、有意思。Thus in short, according to Blumenberg, myth is to reduce “absolutism of reality”.When men was once experiecing the condition of not having control of his existence, they assuming the existecnce of superior power.
In the introduction part, the writer uses “practical side of the challenge of survival”, reinforces Blumenberg’s view on this human specific nature- reinforcing the biological aspect/ this “obsolutisim comes with our biological origion” , centuries and centuries always in our process of biological adaptation and could never be neglected. People needs to develop rational commprehension and control towards that haven’t yet been encountered, understood and or “domesticated”. I believe this is also why Blumenberg argus against myth’s being treating as mere “aesthetical” or “romantic synthesis” after enlightment is not viable. 这也是 Blumenberg 一个小 claim，认为文艺复兴之后对于神话的讨论越来越倾向于成为一种美学意义上的叙事，而忽略了它是非常实际的事和应对措施，并且是人类区分于其余物种的这样一个特点。Since it is so closely connected with our “practical matter”. “a unique accomplistment sets man apart from other species” (here we could link back to our previous readings)
读了以上观点，再看卷首卡夫卡的 quote，就别有一番感触。“整个帕特农存在意义，仅仅是提供了一种途径，使得 determing force 与地球上的人们保持距离，使得人们尚且能够呼吸。”By the beginning of the chapter, in Kafka’s quote “the whole phatheon was only a means by which the determinig forces could be kept at a distance from man’s earthly being, so that human lungs could have air.” This quote echos the two points that we mentioned above – the “seperation of power” and the creation of the “breathing area”. 而这样一种力量的分散，便是创造了所谓的自由呼吸的地方。The experiece of lack of adaptation, thus prepration and expectation of something empty, objectless and beyong comprehension, this is anxiety. Blumnenberg believes all the flight reaction does not have to reach the state of anxiety, the power of fear may cause. 布鲁门伯格认为 flight reaction（神经症躯体化）并不需要 anxiety 的程度，只要是 fear 就会产生了，这里再次要强调，对于布鲁门伯格来说 anxiety 是一种 all-encompassing 程度的东西。而 flight reaction 只是一个很简单的 reaction – this is a simple reaction. -> however transitioning from reacting to “stimuli”, thus requies strong excitmement and suspense. 但是要从这种 reaction 达到 stimuli 的程度，需要非常强烈的刺激。当情形变得越来越清晰、易于理解，那这种刺激或者情感的强度就变得越来越低，于是 “期待” 便产生了。When the situation becomes clear and clear, more and more understandable. Then this excitement and suspence becomess less and less strong, the attitude of “expectation” appears. This is different from Freud. 这和佛洛依德的 account 就很不一样了。Similar to Kurt Goldstein, “anxiety must be rationalized into fear.” Blumemberg again argus this is not about experience (which is the idea of Freud probabaly) But about familiar and unfamiliar, explaniation of in explicable. 布鲁门伯格不断强调的是，这是事关与熟悉和不熟悉的不同情形和应对，而不是某种具体的经历所导致的。-- 对于 Freud 来说，anxiety 通常意味着一种创伤经历的浮现或者开始，但对于布鲁门伯格来说，这种 anxiety 是没有具象的内容的，是空空如也的。Difference- freud realistic anxiety etc, also for Freud, anxiety is expecting a trumatic experience, but for Blumenberg, it is expecting for the “all- encompassing” emptiness- its indefiniteness and lack of object belong to the traumatic situation of helplessness. “anxiety is never realistic”
（Sociological 理论大缸 343 期。感谢作者赐稿）
