序,即序文,也叫序言,是一种文章体裁,比之如诗歌、小说一样。序是怎样成为一种文体的名称的呢?要探明缘由,恐怕还得从序字本身说起。清代段玉裁《说文解字注》说:“叙,古或假序为之。”这即是说“序”是“叙”的假借字,本字还应该是“叙”,而“序”可以当作“叙”来用。西汉司马迁的《史记·太史公自序》用“序”,而东汉班固的《汉书·叙传》却用“叙”,这就是一个很好的证明。 The preface, the preface, also called the prologue, is a genre of essays that are more like poetry and novels. How does the preface become a stylistic name? To find out why, I’m afraid we still have to start with the prologue itself. In the Qing Dynasty, Duan Yucai said, “Shenwen Jiezi Zhushi” said: “Syria, ancient, or false orders are the same.” This means that “order” is a false borrowed word of “Syria,” and the word should also be “Syria”. “Preface” can be used as “Syria”. Xihan Sima Qian’s “Historical Records of Tai Shigong in His Records” uses the “preface”, while the “Han Syria Biography” of Ban Gu in the Eastern Han Dynasty uses “Syria”. This is a good proof.