本文以十九世紀風靡於東亞的「維新」為例、採用觀念史的研究方式，探討「維新」在日治臺灣的推動和詮釋。甲午戰後，日本殖民者挾著明治維新成功的餘威戰勝清廷，並成為臺灣的新主人。受此刺激，「維新」成為當時多數人起而追求的夢想。但，日治臺灣的「維新」是日本殖民政府所推廣和主導下的產物，故在追求「維新」的同時，臺人也掉入殖民陷阱中而不自知。此外，「維新」之風的盛行，也讓保守之士擔憂傳統道德倫理的淪喪，進而產生對「維新」既接受又抵抗的矛盾心態。作為流行語彙的「維新」，更因此被有心人加以諷謔，成為帶有諷刺殖民統治的異質聲音。
其次，本文另深究「維新」與陽明學間的關聯。作為「維新」重要理論的陽明學，亦隨著「維新」觀念的進入，而被傳入臺灣。由當時報刊上的不少志士列傳、雜文刊登和札記書寫等觀之，可以了解臺人已領略陽明學對「維新」的指導作用。最後，透過當時臺灣維新會的成立、陽明學的推廣，臺人將在殖民者對「愛國心」的鼓吹下，逐步走向同化之路。透過以上問題的論述，學界對東亞陽明學的探討，除了中國、日本和韓國間的連結外，臺灣亦將成為注意的思考範疇。

This article discusses the dissemination of Yangmingism in Taiwan during the Japanese colonial period. The method I chose originated from the history of ideas, focusing on the promotion and interpretation of the concept of reform, with the perspective of Yangmingism prevailing in East Asia in the nineteenth century. In the First Sino-Japanese War, Japan defeated Qing China and began to rule Taiwan. The success of the Meiji Reforms extended to Taiwan. However, reform in Taiwan constituted part of Japan’s colonial rule, and the pursuit of reform meant identifying with the colonial rule. Therefore, the conservatives resisted the concept of reform due to their worries about the collapse of traditional morality. Some even satirized the concept of reform and these satires constituted a sarcastic critique of Japanese colonial rule.
Furthermore, this article elaborates the relation between reform and Yangmingism. Being an important element in the reform, Yangmingism was introduced into Taiwan with the introduction of the reform. The concept of reform flourished in biographies and in newspaper articles, suggesting that the concept of reform had affected the minds of the Taiwanese. In the end, Taiwan took the path of assimilation under the Japanese promotion of “patriotism,” as witnessed by the establishment of the Yangming Society that promoted Yangmingism. Through the above investigation, it is hoped that research on Yangmingism in East Asia can be extended to Taiwan besides its more familiar territories of China, Japan, and Korea.