Aesthetic Narrative (New Discussion on Wang Erxin)

Author: Zhang Jieming
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-03-01
Features: "Aesthetic Narrative," as the name implies, is a definition of the characteristics of narrative in the aestheticism that was popular in the 19th century. Although it is a name given by the author of this paper without much self-consciousness, it does indeed reflect that this is an area previously overlooked in the study of aestheticism and Oscar Wilde, or a "stale" object that has yet to be illuminated by the new light of research. When emerging post-classical or postmodern narratology turns its attention to broader fields related to narrative, narratology is no longer the exclusive domain of linguistic formalism and structuralism. Inspired by this new narratology to "show its expanded scope and its continued validity after becoming more profound," and to "emphasize its interdisciplinary nature, which is difficult to classify and locate," the author employs a combination of methods such as literary psychology, literary aesthetics, New Criticism, and cultural anthropology in the study of Oscar Wilde's aesthetic narrative. The aim is to dissect the "events" narrated by Wilde under the umbrella of aestheticism—their motivations, mechanisms, and objectives. Under a broader concept of "story" that includes novels, plays, fairy tales, and more, the focus is on the complex interplay between "narrative form and narrative interpretive context," as well as the interplay between "story planning methods and the narrative strategies they guide." For Wilde, the "context" is both personal and aestheticist—that is, Wilde's narrative characteristics are a composite of his life background, ethnic identity, individual temperament, and aesthetic ideals. The very multiplicity of the object itself necessitates a comprehensive perspective and methodology. Aestheticism was both a reaction against the hypocritical social reality of the Victorian era in Britain and a counterbalance to certain shortcomings in literary realism, romanticism, and naturalism. These factors determined that it was a trend that defied the times, championed individual freedom, and revered individual development. Based on the idea that narrative drive ultimately stems from the author's need for spiritual communication, in the author's view, as a representative of aestheticism, Wilde's depiction of objects, narration, and reasoning primarily originates from his self, driven by his aesthetic ideals, which include subjective feelings, sensory experiences, and psychological potentials, in response to his experiences of the outside world. Among his individual characteristics, such as his ethnic background and unique sexual psychology, aspects like "aesthetic redemption," his sensory perception of space, and his emphasis on the "instant" in time are more central to aestheticism. Although aestheticism has close ties to the non-utilitarian and autonomous theories of art in philosophy and aesthetics, the emphasis on the artificiality of art undoubtedly belongs to Wilde. His view that art is "a lie" is a contribution to aestheticist theory. In Wilde's view, all art is ultimately a human-made product, and imagination is the constructive mechanism that warrants it. The goal of aestheticism is to use this art, born from human minds and more beautiful than real life, to guide people's lives, handling life with the spirit of art. It is precisely because it is a lie that it ignores the truth, and it is because it is a lie that it relies on imagination. Natural imitation of life is thus rejected. The fabricated "lies," the purely fictional worlds, and the extraordinary figures in his novels, fairy tales, plays, and critical texts are all interpretations of his theory of art as a lie. This paper analyzes his narrative mechanism, dominated by imagination, through the abundant plots, ironic scenarios, expressive worlds, restless souls, and conceptualized aesthetic principles in his works. Aestheticism has certain connections with various literary schools that pursue artistic form, but most aestheticists, including Wilde, differ significantly from formalists in the modern sense. Wilde's emphasis on form is primarily a creation or selection of concepts—ideas and methods that differ from the prevailing mainstream literary trends and approaches of the time. He believed that literature is "individualistic," and thus his disregard for mainstream norms, his presupposed transformation of life logic, his independent exploration of suspense in traditional theatrical models, his fondness for metamorphosis and the pursuit of surface sensory pleasure through correspondence and repetition, and his remarkable linguistic craftsmanship—all are closely related to his various aesthetic ideals and his pursuit of contemporary artistic ideals. Wilde is a writer with strong theoretical leanings, as well as one with a homosexual inclination whose influential plays are often considered non-aestheticist, just social dramas, and a host of other complex factors. Therefore, after comprehensively reviewing and clarifying the aesthetic narrative characteristics in all of his works, and after cross-referencing his narrative practice with his aesthetic theory, the conclusion that emerges naturally is that Wilde made unique contributions in various aspects, including art and life, the function of art, artistic expression, the pursuit of art, and art criticism. His critical theory and his understanding of literary language make him an undeniable artist with modern significance.