事實證明艾可(Umberto Eco)的小說《玫瑰之名》在學術界和大眾文化兩個領域中都是一項極大的成就。小說不僅提供了感官上的享受，更充滿了深奧的哲思。更由於艾可本人兼具小說家及符號學(semiotics)理論家的雙重身份，使得小說在「詮釋」的議題上呈現出頗具理論深度的省思。

　　本論文將「詮釋」定義為一種帶有政治動機與意涵的行為(a politicallymotivated act)，不再接受「文本自成一體」(text-in-itself)的觀念。所採取之立場是強調權力機構如何介入論述(discourse)之產生與傳遞。然而本論文亦將由符號學之角度探討符號的本質和閱讀、表意(signification)等問題。

　　論文第一章分析小說中有關「異端」、「貧窮」、以及「笑」等主題之論述，及其與權力抗爭之互動，亦即「權力／論述／知識」(power/ discourse/knowledge)之結構。第二章分別討論埃索(Adso)與威廉(William)兩人解讀(reading/decoding)符號迷宮之行為。第三章處理小說中「文本互涉」與「對話論」之觀念。第四章特別檢視作者艾可在面對自己作品時的「發言位置」(enunciative position)。

　　本論文並未特別遵循任何一種理論之分析方法，目的在於將小說置於當代論述形成之網絡，呈現其中相互輝映、相互批判之潛在關係。最終期望得以驗證艾可的小說與其它當代理論同等「理論化」，並且重新檢視小說／理論之界限。

　　Umberto Eco's <u>The Name of the Rose</u> has been proved a great success in both academies and popular culture. It is a novel full of sensuous wonders and philosophical profundity. Owing to Eco's unsual status--a popular novelist and a semiotic theorist --<u>The Name of the Rose</u> (re)presents a thoughtful contemplation on the issues of interpretation.

　　This thesis assesses "interpretation" as a politically motivated act. Thus, the concept of the "text-in-itself" is rejected. Rather, I take the stance the accentuates power institution's interference with the production and the distribution of discourses. But, this thesis also offers a semiotic survey on the nature of sign and the process of reading and signification.

　　Chapter One focuses on the production of discourses on heresy, poverty, and laughter in the novel and its connection with power: in other words, the power/discourse/knowledge structure. Chapter Two respectively discusses the process of Adso's and William's reading/decoding the labyrinth of signs. Chapter Three deals with the ideas of "intertextuality" and "dialogism" presented by the novel. Chapter Four specially examines Eco's enunciative position with respect to the interpretations on his own text.

　　This thesis does not particularly favor any theoretical stance of methodology. The purpose is to discuss the novel as part of the network of the contemporary discourses. The tentative goal of this study is to prove that Eco's novel is no less theorized than other theories as such and finally to re- examine the boundary between theory/novel.