本文試圖梳理前漢四家《詩》經解的詮釋脈絡。前漢四家論詩之釋義固屢有差異之處，惟若以詩用的角度切入，可窺見四家詩說懷抱共同的旨趣，故可相互參酌與發用。而於《詩》中，四家詩頗賦予作為開篇之〈關雎〉重要的意義，探討〈關雎〉於《詩》本文當中的定位，當是可行且不可避免的進路。準此，筆者將以〈關雎〉為討論中心，於論述進路上，筆者重讀毛詩序中「繫」字之義，進而確認毛詩所判定〈關雎〉的創作年代，可與三家詩相比附；由此亦可窺見其所設想的〈關雎〉之用，與祭祀禮樂間存在著莫大聯繫。以祭祀禮樂為原點，前漢儒者構設「天道」論述，從而使〈關雎〉與其所重視的《春秋》之間隱含著時間與政教之聯繫；其《詩》解，亦在此詮釋框架中得到落實。進一步相衡前漢儒者與先秦儒者的〈關雎〉詩用觀，更可發現其中之位移與間距，折射出漢儒解詩的現實基礎。

From the inception of the Han dynasty, the Chinese classics gradually began to receive greater attention from the elite. “Mastering the classics for practical affairsˮ became the aspiration for all up-and-coming Confucians. Former Han Confucians’ interpretations of the classics may not have been identical to Confucius’ “original meaning,” but this did not prevent them from forging a unique historical view through their exegesis of the classics and their construction of Confucius’ image. Among the classics, the Classic of Poetry (Shijing 詩經) is perhaps the hardest to expound. As Dong Zhongshu once said，“there is no definitive explanation for the Classic of Poetry.” By exploring how Confucians in the Former Han interpreted the Classic of Poetry, it is possible to discern the development of tendency toward “fabling meaning” in their exposition of the classics. In the Classic of Poetry, the poem “Guan Ju” is crucial; not only does it serve as the first poem in the ancient anthology, but it was also specifically praised by Confucius in the Analects. Therefore, in order to understand how the Classic of Poetry became used in statecraft during the Han dynasty, researchers need to assess the importance of “Guanjuˮ and explore the zeitgeist it represents under the historical structure framed by Former Han Confucians. This article takes “Guanju” as an entry point. It first examines the common purport of “Guanjuˮ as expressed by the four schools of Classic of Poetry exegesis in the Former Han. It then compares this common purport with the Han Confucian exegesis of the Spring and Autumn Annals in an effort to review the textual nature of the Classic of Poetry. Finally, it discusses how Confucians of the Former Han made classical exegesis the theoretical cornerstone of their political practice.