This paper expounds human aesthetic consciousness, the essence of beauty and art and the science of its historical development with Marxist viewpoints and methods. It is a series of aesthetic theories of Marx and Engels about the essence of beauty and art, the relationship between artistic production and material production, art and capitalism, and art and capitalism. It was founded by Marx and Engels, and it was enriched and developed from different angles by proletarian revolutionary instructors and Marxist propagandists such as Laffag, Merlin, plekhanov, Lenin, Luna Charles, Mao Zedong and so on under different historical conditions.
main content
Marx and Engels' aesthetic thoughts are mainly found in 1844 Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts, Holy Family, German Ideology, Economic Manuscripts (1857- 1858), Critical Outline of Political Economy (Draft), Surplus Value Theory and Capital. Specifically, Marxist aesthetics mainly includes the following aspects:
Marx and Engels believe that labor is a process of material transformation that people use their own activities to cause, regulate and control the relationship between man and nature.
As a natural force, man and natural matter are opposite. In order to possess and use natural materials, people moved their natural forces-arms and legs, heads and hands. When man moves and changes the nature outside him through this kind of movement, he also changes his own nature; The change of external nature is the root of the beauty of the objective world, while the change of human itself enriches and develops human sensibility, forming ears with a sense of music and eyes that can feel formal beauty. In the lower stage of ignorance, the main objective condition of labor is not the product of labor, but the unprocessed nature. They are the premise of labor. People can only carry out their own life activities if they regard the natural conditions of production as the premise of their own production and existence in advance and regard nature as their own things. Therefore, the broad object of labor should include all the material conditions needed for labor. Man's transformation of nature can not be simply understood as the change of individual natural form, but the domination and possession of the whole nature. As the object of labor, nature is inextricably linked with human life in many aspects, such as plants, animals, stones, air and sunshine. , on the one hand, as the object of natural science, on the other hand, as the object of art, into human consciousness. Calendars carved on the graves of American Indian chiefs and stone pillars from the four seasons to the sun prove that people in barbaric times have integrated a part of nature into their spiritual life.
Marx and Engels pointed out that the practical activities of human beings to transform nature are purposeful and conscious.
Before production, people have put forward the imaginary production object conceptually, and put it forward as an internal image, as a need, motivation and purpose. Then, through practical activities, they apply the scale of subject to the object, making the object subjective and objective. In production, people first have a sense of actual interests, and thus have an understanding of the natural laws that restrict these interests. With the increase of human understanding of nature, the means of human action on nature are also increasing. Because people's goals are restricted by objective laws and based on the development laws of the objective world, in order to achieve their goals, people must stipulate the contents and methods of their activities according to the laws and attributes of the objects themselves.
According to Marx and Engels, human beings can only change the form of matter in production. Through labor activities and with the help of labor tools, people make predetermined changes to the labor object and become natural substances suitable for people's needs. Using wood to make a table, the shape of wood has changed, but the table is still wood. Things are obtained from the outside through labor. Marx pointed out: "Animals are only built according to the scale and needs of the species they belong to, while people know how to produce according to the scale of any species and how to apply the internal scale to objects everywhere. Therefore, people also build according to the laws of beauty "(Complete Works of Marx and Engels, Volume 42, page 97). The so-called law of beauty exists in the unity of the self-realization of people's purpose and the law of objective things themselves, and is reflected in the shaping of things' forms emotionally and realistically. This form marks people's free control over the inevitability of the object, condenses people's creative wisdom, talent and strength, and accumulates people's social feelings, ideals and aspirations, so it is both perceptual and not purely perceptual, and contains a dynamic and rational grasp of the object.
Marx and Engels believe that the aesthetic perception of form is only possible after it goes beyond the rough practical needs.
Myths, legends, poems, ritual singing, dances with military mobilization significance, the production of decorations, the color and graphics of shellfish, the symmetry of tools and weapons in form, etc. American tribes in the barbaric period gradually emerged and developed after consumption broke away from the original nature and primitive state. Although at this time, they still blend with the needs of productive labor, public affairs management and military action, as well as witchcraft activities. And they are not independent of the usefulness of production, but they are not just a means to meet natural needs; But the materialization of people's will and wisdom, and the reappearance of people's spiritual feelings and emotions began to have the significance of people's self-appreciation. From the point of view of direct utility, the form of objects is irrelevant, and their value lies only in their usefulness, their internal structure and quality. However, when human beings go beyond the initial crude needs of nature, form begins to have independent value and appeals to human senses through its appearance, so it has the meaning of beauty.
Main theory
The essence and origin theory of beauty
Marx clearly pointed out in 1844 Economic-Philosophical Manuscripts and other works that labor created beauty. It also reveals that beauty is closely related to people's essential strength.
Theory of laws of beauty
On the basis of aesthetic creation, Marx clearly pointed out that human activities to create beauty are not arbitrary, but there are laws to follow, and human beings create beautiful things according to aesthetic laws. The theory of Marxist aesthetics on the law of beauty fully affirms the subjectivity of aesthetic subject, and does not ignore the law of objective things as aesthetic creation materials, thus making a profound theoretical summary of human aesthetic creation.
On the relationship between alienated labor and aesthetic activities
Marx and Engels made a detailed study of alienated labor in capitalist society. Through the analysis of alienated labor, on the one hand, they sharply criticized the evil of capitalist private ownership, on the other hand, they specifically analyzed two aesthetic meanings of alienated labor for the duality of aesthetic activities: creating ugliness and creating beauty.
Theory of artistic essence
When discussing the essence of art, Marxist aesthetics first emphasizes the dependence of art as a superstructure on the economic base: "People must have food, shelter, drink and clothing to engage in politics, science, art, religion and so on.
In addition, Marxist aesthetics also discusses the social function of literature and art, the authenticity of literature and art and so on.
Marx and Engels
Important guiding point of view
Marx and Engels used the world outlook and methodology of dialectical materialism and historical materialism, combined with the proletarian revolutionary movement, critically absorbed and transformed the achievements of aesthetic history, especially German classical aesthetics, scientifically expounded the emergence and development of human aesthetic consciousness, and laid a solid foundation for Marxist aesthetics. Marx and Engels regard aesthetic consciousness and artistic phenomenon as a kind of social consciousness and social ideology determined by certain social existence and economic foundation. In the final analysis, the development of material production restricts the development of the whole human history, thus restricting the development of aesthetics and art. However, Marx and Engels also pointed out the particularity of art and its imbalance with the development of material production, and paid full attention to important aesthetic issues such as the complexity of art, the times and eternity of art. Marx also investigated the essence of beauty and the generation of aesthetic consciousness from the labor practice of material production, and put forward many important viewpoints with epoch-making significance. When commenting on some important writers and artists in history, Marx and Engels also published a series of viewpoints that have great guiding significance for the aesthetic study of the authenticity and tendency of realistic literature, tragedy and comedy.
Attach importance to the social role of art
Marx and Engels attached great importance to the social role of art in leading the cause of proletarian liberation. They kept in touch with some famous artists at that time, and affirmed and praised those works that expressed the demands of proletarian liberation and criticized capitalist society. It is clearly pointed out that the proletarian struggle, as an inevitable and important stage in the development of human history, should occupy its own position in the field of realism.
Through the scientific analysis of the capitalist system, Marx and Engels pointed out that only under the condition of eliminating capitalist ownership and realizing * * * productism can people get full and all-round development, and thus aesthetic consciousness and artistic activities can also get full development. (See the aesthetic thoughts of Marx and Engels)
The Marxist propagandists of the second international era, Raffaq and Merlin, used the principle of historical materialism to analyze and criticize the aesthetic trend of thought at that time and various literary phenomena associated with it, enriching Marxist aesthetics.
Laverg's criticism
According to Engels' suggestion, Laferger criticized naturalism associated with positivism, analyzed the works of E. Zola and others, and pointed out that naturalism stayed in the appearance of phenomena and the essence of defending capitalism, and also criticized the hypocrisy and exaggeration of bourgeois art. Because of the nature of capitalism itself, bourgeois art is as hypocritical as bourgeois advertisements, trademarks and commodity descriptions.
Merlin's literary criticism works
Merlin's literary criticism, The Legend of Lessing, studies history with historical materialism as the leading factor, and concretely analyzes the complex relationship between literary development and socio-economic situation, class struggle and class power contrast. It exposed the nature of Prussia's enlightened absolutism and restored Lessing's image as a pioneer of bourgeois revolution. When commenting on J.W. von Goethe and J.C.F von Schiller, Merlin pointed out: Just because the classical masters Goethe and Schiller have made amazing achievements in the despicable state of feudal Germany, we should not praise that despicable state. As a historical materialism, Merlin's works have made important contributions to aesthetic research and are highly praised by Engels. Merlin took a cautious and serious attitude towards the prevailing naturalism at that time, and published a series of articles for comments and analysis in the past 20 years. In his view, the fundamental weakness of naturalism lies in refusing the artist's imagination to deal with reality and denying the artist's discovery and originality, and the result must be to regard photography as the highest achievement of plastic arts. Merlin pointed out that it is one-sided to think that it is impossible for the proletariat to create excellent proletarian literature before seizing power.
Plekhanov
Plekhanov made a study of historical materialism on artistic phenomena. On the issue of aesthetic consciousness, he systematized the views of Marx and Engels and emphasized the great importance of social psychology as an intermediary link between economic base and superstructure. From 65438 to 1990s, plekhanov refuted the attacks and distortions of Russian reactionary ideological circles on revolutionary democrats in a series of works, inherited the excellent tradition of Russian revolutionary democratic aesthetics, and made a class analysis of bourgeois tendency and decadent art of "art for art's sake". Although plekhanov's aesthetic theory still has some shortcomings, it has made great contributions to Marxist aesthetics. (See гв. Plekhanov)
Lenin viewpoint
Lenin attached great importance to the connection between art and proletarian struggle before the October Revolution. Lenin's criticism of empiricism and clarification of materialist reflection theory have important aesthetic significance. Lenin pointed out that literature and art should be part of the general cause of the proletariat and cannot be separated from the leadership of proletarian political parties, and at the same time stressed the need to pay attention to the characteristics of art itself. Lenin made an incisive analysis of Tolstoy's world outlook and the duality of his works. Among the proletariat