On the Formative Foundation of Cai Yuanpei's Aesthetic Education Thought

Cai Yuanpei's aesthetic education thought explains, first, his active response to the movement of saving the nation and enlightenment as a modern intellectual, and second, his conscious selection for a educational system as a modern educator, which provided necessary premises for recognizing the legal status of aesthetic education. Furthermore, the formation of Cai's aesthetic education thought, in terms of its nature, goal and social role, shared similarities and differences with many other aesthetic education ideas of that period.