在傳播學的學術思想史中,杜威的傳播觀具有開拓性的價值。杜威界定傳播的基石是經驗自然主義,循此闡釋了傳播的核心意旨。杜威認為傳播的本質機制是經驗共享,從而使有機體質變為社會人,使單個人構建成共同體,在這種意義上,傳播成為社會的表征和隱喻。杜威特別闡釋傳遞(transmission)、交流(communication)與社會的關系,凱瑞據此認為杜威的著作中存在兩種傳播觀,創造性地繼承杜威傳播思想,提出了傳播(communication)的傳遞觀與儀式觀。兩種傳播觀成為傳播學術思想史的主流敘事,杜威傳播觀與凱瑞傳播觀之間一脈相傳成為共識,但彼此的差異一直被學術界所忽視。實際上,杜威認為transmission與communication至少是對等的,或者前者位階高于后者;凱瑞認為transmission只是communication統攝之下的一種子類型而已。在這樁學術公案中,依據語境本身準確把握杜威的傳播觀,并厘清兩者的異同,從而還原學術歷史被遮蔽的景觀,十分必要。

In the academic history of communication studies,Dewey’s concept of communication has unique value.He defined empirical naturalism as the foundation of communication. According to this framework,Dewey elaborated on the core meanings of communication. He believes that the essence of communication lies in sharing experience,which enables organisms to evolve into social beings,and then make individuals constructed into a community. In this sense,Dewey saw communication as a representation and metaphor of society. Dewey especially interpreted the relation between transmission and society,and the relation between the communication and society. Carey believed that there are two different meanings of communication according to Dewey ’s two main ideas of communication and transmission. Carey put forward a transmission view of communication and a ritual view of communication,creatively inheriting Dewey’s theory. These two views have become the mainstream narrative of the academic history of communication studies,but their differences were ignored by academia for a long time. In fact,Dewey believed that transmission and communication are at least equivalent,or that the former’s status is higher than the latter. Carry believed that transmission is only a subtype of communication. Therefore,in this academic case,to understand Dewey’s theory of communication clearly and to differentiate the two by reading the text in context,it is necessary to clarify the hidden landscape of academic history.