書籍史是近年來明清史研究中的熱門議題。受到歐美研究的啟發，明清中國的書籍文化史研究擺脫純粹技術史的研究，而改從社會文化史的角度切入，開拓了新的視野。當前所謂的書籍史，其實包含了出版文化、書寫文化與閱讀史等幾個不同面向，成為跨學科的新興研究領域。本文回顧近年來在中文、日文及英文學界的研究趨勢與成果，希望藉此展現書籍史研究的可能性，並展望未來的研究發展。 本文先回顧歐美書籍史的研究歷程，討論歐美學者針對書籍史研究曾提出的不同想法與概念，以及他們彼此間的差異；然後概論明清社會的出版文化及相關的問題，包括書價、識字率與出版市場的分布；接下來則討論明清書籍史中幾個不同的主題：首先是文學、書寫與閱讀的關係，尤其值得注意的是其中的性別議題；其次是士人與明清出版文化的互動，我將把焦點集中在周啟榮及周紹明(Joseph P. McDermott)兩位學者的近作上；再次則討論明清時期技藝的文本化，與日常生活中的書籍。最後則對於有待解決的議題，提出個人的思考和反省。

The cultural history of the book in late imperial China has received much attention in recent years. Inspired by scholarship on Western history, researchers from Taiwan, Japan, Europe, and especially America have tried to investigate Chinese book history from new perspectives. The recent studies of book history include not only considerations of the printing technology but also of written culture and the history of reading. By reviewing the recent trends in the study of book history in Ming-Qing China, the aim of this article is to point out the further potential issues in this field. This article introduces the development of the study of book history in Europe and America and surveys the cultural history of the book in late imperial China. Major topics in recent scholarships are discussed: the relationships between writing, reading and publishing; the recent works by Chow Kai-wing and Joseph McDermott concerning literary professionals in publishing culture; the “textualization of techniques,” and books in everyday life.

書籍史; 出版文化; 閱讀史; 書寫文化

history of book; publishing culture; history of reading; written culture