The Aesthetic Orientation in Xu Wei's Essays

The late Ming Dynasty is a glorious era of essay production moving towards self-ruling.Xu Wei,living in late Ming Dynasty,wrote not only numerous,but also high-quality aesthetic essays.He obtained a crucial position in development of essay writing in late Ming Dynasty.His works outran those by seven-writer school.He inherited from schools of writers in Tang and Song Dynasties,and started new school of Gong'an.In Essays by Sixteen Writers edited by Lu Yunlong,Xu Wei was put on top of list.The leading writer in literary production of late Ming Dynasty,Yuan Hongdao ranked Xu Wei's essays as best.It is also noteworthy that his works bear firm and clear aesthetic orientation,which advocates that the past belongs to present,completely denying revivalism and stressing innate character and pursuing novelty.