New Practice Aesthetics Theory

Author: Zhang Yuneng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-02-01
Features: This book is the final outcome of the 2001 National Social Science Fund Project "The Category System of Marxist Practical Aesthetics" (01BZX044), led by the renowned scholar Zhang Yuneng. The development history of practical aesthetics is essentially a microcosm of the entire theoretical development of aesthetics in New China. While previous works on practical aesthetics primarily focused on in-depth exploration and clarification of its various issues, this book provides a systematic summary and advancement of practical aesthetics over the past five decades. The book is divided into two parts:
Part 1 consists of six chapters: "The Structure of Practice and the Characteristics of Beauty," "Types of Practice and Aesthetic Activities," "The Process of Practice and Aesthetic Activities," "The Function of Practice and Aesthetics," "Bidirectional Objectification of Practice and Aesthetics," and "The Freedom of Creative Practice and Aesthetics." It primarily explores the fundamental issues of practical aesthetics, laying a solid foundation for the construction of its category system.
Part 2 consists of seven chapters: "The Freedom of Practice and the Categories of Beauty," "Gentle Beauty," "Fierce Beauty," "Farce and Humor," "Comedicity," "Tragicity," and "Ugliness." It further expands on the content of Part 1, offering an in-depth exploration of many core categories of practical aesthetics.
In summary, this book is not only a specialized work that systematically summarizes discussions on practical aesthetics but also an innovative and groundbreaking effort to re-examine it. It is bound to influence the field of aesthetics in China and even the broader academic community.