江戶時期傳入日本的《金瓶梅》，與《三國演義》、《水滸傳》、《西遊記》一起，被譽爲中國的四大奇書。然而與其他三部小說相比，《金瓶梅》對日本文學乃至文化的影響，顯然有所不及。究竟是什麼原因，使得《金瓶梅》未能在近世日本得到廣泛的傳播呢？本文擬通過對江戶時期《金瓶梅》相關資料的梳理與考證，指出其時並未將《金瓶梅》視為一部淫書而避而遠之，其之所以未能得到廣泛傳播，乃是因為其言語本身之深奧。在聲情方面，春天的聲情可由〈春田四詠〉整組詩的基調來體會，至於夏日田園的聲情，在〈秋田四詠〉詩中也可以加以聆聽，秋天的聲情基調在〈山居漫興〉中也可了解此山居時他的悲慨抑鬱。冬季原型的聲情，則可由〈感事述懷集杜二十首並序〉組詩中之用韻可領略那末日之慟，包括自我解嘲以及對於時局的諷刺。至於詩稿的最後一組詩〈亂後初歸里中〉五首之用韻，也可體會他哀慟故園之殘破，一生努力竟成幻滅，這也是《陶村詩稿》八卷次序安排的用意。 The Golden Lotus, ranked as one of the Four Great Masterpieces of China (the other three, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Outlaws of the Marsh, Journey to the West) was firstly introduced to Japan in the Edo period. However, compared with the other three works, The Golden Lotus is considered to have had less influence on Japanese literature and culture. What is the reason that The Golden Lotus has not been widely disseminated in modern Japan? Through investigating the relevant materials and researches, this paper argues that The Golden Lotus’s limited reception in the Edo period was not because of its labeling as an erotic fiction, but because of its esoteric and difficult language.
