However, some other scholars, such as Wen Yiduo and Lu Xun, once had a long-cherished wish to write a "great literary history of China" that lasted for thousands of years. However, due to many changes and external interference, their wishes failed to be finally realized and became "last wishes". It will be a lasting regret for scholars themselves and China's academic history to describe the disillusionment of historical aspirations. Scholars are keen on writing history, and their original intention is nothing more than to show their academic insight and strength through the writing of special history of this discipline, and to reflect the overall grasp of the research field through writing history, thus occupying the commanding heights in the research of this discipline.
According to the recollection articles of Mr. Zong's disciple Lin Tonghua, it can be seen that the subjective and objective conditions for Zong Baihua to compile the History of Chinese Aesthetics in the 1960s were quite mature. Subjective conditions can be clearly recognized: Mr. Zong has laid a deep foundation of classical literature since he was a child, and then studied in Germany, deeply nourished by the spirit of German classical philosophy and modern artistic thoughts; He himself is interested in all kinds of arts, especially China's appreciation of calligraphy, painting, poetry and garden architecture, which is beyond doubt. Mr. Zong is also a poet. His poetic language and intuitive wisdom left a deep impression on us in the poems "Walking Clouds and Flowing Water" and "Aesthetic Walking". All these show that Mr. Mingzong is competent for the compilation of the History of Chinese Aesthetics.
Objectively speaking, at that time, many scholars in domestic philosophy and aesthetics, especially master scholars, were still alive, such as Zhu Guangqian, Deng Yizhe, Feng Youlan and Tang Yongtong, and they could exchange needed goods academically. From 65438 to 0952, the national colleges and universities carried out large-scale adjustment. The disadvantages brought by this integration are quite serious. For example, Tsinghua University's philosophy and literary tradition were cut off, and Tsinghua's humanistic background was taken away and turned into a university of science and engineering. It is difficult to continue Tsinghua's humanistic tradition after 1990s. However, the integration of colleges and departments in colleges and universities is a blessing for the philosophy department of Peking University. At that time, the philosophy departments of all universities in China were merged into Peking University, and the philosophy department of Peking University became the only philosophy department in China. After this adjustment, Mr Zong Baihua was transferred from Nanjing University to Peking University, and Professor Deng Yizhe from Tsinghua University was also transferred to Peking University. Together with Mr. Zhu Guangqian from the Department of Western Languages of Peking University, Peking University's academic strength in aesthetics has reached its peak. Therefore, the objective conditions for Zong Baihua to write the history of Chinese aesthetics are unique.
In addition, Mr. Zong advocates that aesthetic research should pay attention to all kinds of arts and pay attention to the progress of ancient history research. Unearthed cultural relics and new archaeological discoveries are of great help to understand and deepen ancient aesthetic consciousness (there were also many new archaeological discoveries in the 1960s). He once said that "the study of aesthetic history cannot be separated from historical materials, especially archaeological discoveries". As you can imagine, if Mr. Zong had set about compiling history at that time and supplemented some new materials with the new progress of China archaeology in the 1980s, this "history of Chinese aesthetics" would shine brilliantly in later generations. Unfortunately, none of this has come true. This kind of loss belongs not only to Mr Zong Baihua personally, but also to the whole aesthetic circle and even the whole academic circle in China. So, what is the real reason why Zong Baihua failed to write history?
According to Professor Ye Lang from the Department of Philosophy of Peking University, 1962, the State Council appointed Zhou Yang to preside over the compilation of college liberal arts textbooks. At that time, three aesthetic textbooks were included in the compilation plan, one of which was An Introduction to Aesthetics edited by Wang Chaowen. The other is the History of Western Aesthetics written by Mr. Zhu Guangqian alone. There is also a History of Chinese Aesthetics edited by Zong Baihua. The History of Western Aesthetics was successfully published in the 1960s, and The Introduction to Aesthetics was officially published in 198 1, but the History of Chinese Aesthetics died. Finally, Min He was responsible for compiling two volumes of Selected Materials of Chinese Aesthetic History. This is the basic situation at that time. According to Lin Tonghua's article "Philosopher Eternity, Walking with Heart", Mr. Zong began to edit "History of Chinese Aesthetics" in 1960s, and talked with Mr. Tang Yongtong about the special methods and opinions of studying China's aesthetics. Both Mr. Tang and Mr. Zong emphasized that China's aesthetics should collect information from a broader background and proceed from the aesthetic thoughts summarized in artistic practice. Mr. Tang even thought that the graceful and restrained records in the Tripitaka might be useful for aesthetic research. Mr. Zong agrees with Mr. Tang's point of view, emphasizing some literati notes and artists' experiences. Although they are few words, they can occasionally find profound aesthetic opinions. Later, the compilation of the History of Chinese Aesthetics failed to come out as smoothly as Mr. Zhu's History of Western Aesthetics, because the participants had different opinions and did not try according to Mr. Zong's profound views on artistic practice and Mr. Tang's research methods on Buddhist aesthetic thought. It is a very arduous task to sort out a large number of notes on the history of Chinese aesthetics left by Mr. Zong. (Appendix to Volume IV of Complete Works of Zong Baihua, Anhui Education Press 1994)
From this passage, we can infer that the differences between Zong Baihua and other members of the writing team are mainly in three aspects:
First of all, it should be the difference of academic positions between the two sides. That is to say, Mr. Zong adhered to the academic standard, while the other party with Zhou Yang as the "host" may have adhered to the dogmatic Marxist-Leninist political stance and the mechanical reflection theory of literary aesthetics at that time. The two "Tao" are different and inconsistent, and the differences in positions will only lead to a break. As long as you find an Introduction to Aesthetics (edited by Wang Chaowen) published at that time and study it again, you will find how different it is from Zong Baihua's Aesthetics!
Secondly, there are great differences in the collection and adoption of Chinese aesthetic history materials. It can be seen from Lin Tonghua's article that Mr. Zong agrees with Tang Yongtong's point of view and emphasizes collecting information on a broader basis than literature and art, which is in line with the facts of China's ancient literature and art, aesthetics and philosophy. But in this way, it may be time-consuming and laborious, resulting in a heavy and arduous writing task. So it is inevitable that some people will oppose it.
Thirdly, Zong Baihua may also be opposed and criticized in the specific writing of aesthetic history. It is unimaginable to use Marxism–Leninism's literary policy and terminology to explain and "interpret" China's classical aesthetics, which will be an embarrassing cultural phenomenon. Today, we reread Mr. Zong's aesthetic thesis, which is still deeply inspired, inspiring us to think more deeply about China's aesthetics, and we are often intoxicated with the poetic words. Among modern scholars, Zong Baihua's ingenious and original views on China's aesthetics are unparalleled. His flowing "beautiful prose" really reached the "space cloud, cold pond goose trail; The realm of "the snow is unusual and Tong Di is too noisy" is fascinating. However, in the academic environment at that time, the academic discourse power was not in the hands of Mr. Zong Baihua. Therefore, the plan to write history was ultimately frustrated and aborted ... this is a major lack and regret in the field of aesthetics. This plan to write history will last for 20 years! Until 1985, Mr. Ye Lang, who had been Zong Baihua's teaching assistant in 1960s, published the monograph "Outline of the History of Chinese Aesthetics", which filled the gap in the history of Chinese aesthetics and was also concerned and recognized by academic circles. This work also established the author's position in the field of aesthetics. However, Mr Ye Lang himself is not satisfied with the historical outline. He once said, "I want to supplement and revise the Outline of the History of Chinese Aesthetics. Among them, it is necessary to add a chapter on the theory of life realm of Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasties. I ignored this when I wrote the outline. " ("Bamboo in the Chest", Anhui Education Press); Not only the aesthetics of Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasties and the aesthetics of life realm were ignored, but also the influence of Zen on China's traditional aesthetics was not mentioned in The Outline of History, which should not be mentioned. We also expect Ye Lang to revise the Outline of History into a more complete history of Chinese aesthetics. It is only the aesthetic history that Mr. Zong failed to complete, which has brought great defects to the research and development of modern aesthetics and even the construction of schools.
Here, the author has no intention to make a comprehensive review of the development track of China's modern aesthetics. He just wants to review the history of aesthetic research in Peking University, hoping to review the past and learn new things. He hopes to rediscover the trend of contemporary aesthetics from the review of history and retrieve our long-lost academic courage from the sages. As far as China's aesthetics is concerned, there are two academic traditions: one is the classical tradition before the 20th century, which is rich, complex and diverse, both vigorous and daunting. The second is the modern tradition since the 20th century. Although this tradition has a short history, it cannot be ignored. Cai Yuanpei is the pioneer of the aesthetic tradition of Peking University. His theory of "replacing religion with aesthetic education" is deeply rooted in people's hearts, and advocates that families, schools and society should shoulder the heavy responsibility of aesthetic education and implement the great aesthetic education concept of lifelong aesthetic education. It's really well-meaning. But Mr Cai's significance to modern aesthetics is more a gesture and the establishment of sociological value. The founders of modern aesthetics are Zhu Guangqian and Zong Baihua. Thanks to their efforts, the academic tradition of aesthetics has been established.
Academic tradition, referred to as "learning unification". The word "learning unification" has existed since ancient times. Xiong Cilv, a neo-Confucian in the early Qing Dynasty, wrote Xue Tong, but he still argued from the standpoint of orthodoxy. There are four main points in the so-called academic unification today: first, the emergence of master scholars; The second is to lay the basic direction of the research and development of this discipline and form the basic academic thought and methodology; Third, it has formed a research peak in some aspects and fields, which has great enlightenment to the research of latecomers and has room for academic growth. Just as Mr. Chen Yinque praised Wang Guowei, "his works can change the atmosphere at that time and show people to follow the rules"; Fourth, scholars consciously safeguard academic freedom and dignity, and do not allow political and non-academic forces to trample on them. Without these four factors, it cannot be called academic unity.
The inheritance of learning system depends on the consciousness and care of scholars and their "independent spirit and free thought". Secondly, it depends on a just and reasonable social environment. When the social environment is bad or not conducive to maintaining academic dignity and academic unity, scholars' own academic consciousness is precious. In my opinion, looking back on Zong Baihua's abandonment of the historical plan shows that Mr. Zong's academic spirit of "preferring death to surrender" is ostensibly a concession, the essence of which is to safeguard academic freedom and dignity and the essence of academic unity. Therefore, from the perspective of academic history, Mr. Zong is "trying to write history into a legacy, but studying abroad dominates the world"!
The profound academic tradition is the foundation and premise of forming an open, active and free school, inheriting the academic system and relying on the conscious consciousness of scholars; The establishment of the school depends on the free contention of scholars. Today, China's modern aesthetics still lacks a real school. Mr. Ye Lang has also been fascinated by aesthetic schools for a long time. He said in "Preface to Wardrobe": "Chinese and foreign academic history tells us that there is no originality of theory without schools; Without schools, there would be no real schools of thought; Without schools of thought, there would be no great development and prosperity of learning. The emergence of different schools in the same subject field and the arguments between different schools are conducive to academic development and prosperity ... schools and schools should respect each other and be harmonious but different. " He also believes: "Peking University has a tradition of attaching importance to aesthetic education and aesthetic research since Mr. Cai Yuanpei became president. Deng Yizhe, Zhu Guangqian, Zong Baihua and other senior scholars left us with extremely valuable aesthetic wealth. When we are about to enter the 2 1 century, Peking University scholars should have a high degree of historical consciousness and redouble their efforts to create a new aesthetic school that embodies Peking University's academic tradition and style. " Mr Ye Lang saw the importance of establishing an aesthetic school.
Starting from the unity of learning, moving towards an aesthetic school with a hundred schools of thought contending, getting rid of the "aphasia" dilemma of China's modern aesthetics, getting rid of the hegemony of western aesthetic discourse and moving towards the great prosperity of aesthetics are the goals that every aesthetician yearns for and pursues. We also hope that all scholars who are determined to study aesthetics can "make up for the shortcomings of predecessors and understand the laws of others" in the academic field pioneered by predecessors, and establish a real aesthetic school in China. In the 1940s, Mr Zong Baihua wrote a poem "Five Laws":
The wind is blowing in the sky, and the green is pressing the peaks.
Clouds leak the evening sun, and light pours the cold current.
Long egrets fly, faint and lonely.
The mooring line is full moon, and everything is clear.
The egret described in the poem is leisurely and lonely, the moonlight shines, and everything is clear. Isn't it the realm of Mr. Zong's learning and being a man? We also hope that the future "Zong Baihua School" can have such an academic realm.