唯美主义批评在英国的兴起与消歇

The rise and fade of aestheticism in Britain

唯美主义作为一种文艺思想,在英国具有原发性质,但外来理论的输入为其发展成为一种批评思潮注入了激进的催化因素。唯美主义批评在英国的发展经历了两个阶段。其中,瓦尔特.佩特是第一阶段的代表。与传统唯美主义批评相比,佩特对唯美主义批评主题进行了重大的调整:由对文学自律的集中探讨转移到了对于个人主体性地位的确立以及文学艺术拯救功能的重点思考。王尔德则是第二阶段的代表,也是唯美主义批评的集大成者,其批评实践、理论建构从逻辑上标志着唯美主义批评的终结。

Although it originated in Britain itself, aestheticism managed to develop into a trend of criticism after the introduction of some radical foreign theories, which acted as great activators. Aestheticism can be divided into two phases. The first was marked by Walter Pater, who made a significant adjustment in the criticism of aestheticism： the traditional focus on the self-governance of literature was shifted to the confirmation of individual subjectivity and the thinking of literary salvation. The second phase is represented by the great epitome of aestheticism, Oscar Wilde, whose critic practice and theoretical construction brought a logical end to the criticism of aestheticism.