RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN METAPHYSICS AND AESTHETICS AS SEEN BY PEOPLE OF THE WEI AND JIN PERIODS

Profundity of the metaphysics embraced by people of the Wei and Jin periods manifests itself in the idea of awakening. The rejection of divinity and emphasis on humanity at the times inevitably led to the emphasis of subjectivity in the act of aesthetic appreciation and awareness of the aesthetic value of the physical aspects of human beings as appreciators of beauty. It was out of this scrutiny of human beings that the aesthetic theory of the Wei and Jin periods evolved. It was based on admiration for the metaphysics of Lao Tzu and Zhuang Tzu, and rejection of the Confucian classics of the Western Han and Eastern Han dynasties. On one hand, the metaphysics of Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu provided the philosophical ground the aesthetics of the Wei and Jin periods could fall back on. On the other hand, some of its propositions and categories were directly incorporated as those of aesthetics while others evoked new aesthetic propositions. It is now clear that the metaphysics and aesthetics of the Wei and Jin periods fused as a result of the shift of focus onto human beings. Metaphysics laid the cornerstone for aesthetics whereas aesthetics made metaphysical ideas concrete.