“幼态持续”及其人文意蕴

摘要

The theory of neoteny reveals that:we are‘permanent children’;the early stages of ontog-eny are a storehouse of potential adaptation; retarded development is one of the features of human childhood;and retardation gains much of its adaptive significance in human evolution. The most direct contribution the theory of neoteny made to the humanities is its implication for the view of the child, which makes the idea of child-centeredness and childishness creed win strong support from biology, theory of evolution and other sciences. Moreover, the theory of neoteny is an antidote to hostile attitude to childhood, underestimating childhood and destroying childhood.%幼态持续学说向我们揭示：人是“永恒的儿童”；童年是潜在适应的“贮藏室”；发育缓慢是人类个体童年的特征；发育缓慢使人类大受其益；等等。幼态持续学说在人文学科上最直接的贡献是它的儿童观意蕴。它也使儿童本位观念和童心主义哲学获得了生物学、进化论等自然科学方面有力的支持支援支撑。幼态持续学说对童年的发现，对于改变以童年为敌的社会现实具有重要意义，对于小觑童年、毁坏童年、急匆匆将儿童赶往成年世界的想法和做法，是一剂解药。