“欲”:晚明日常生活美学观念的本原

"Desire":The Origin of the Aesthetic Concept of the Daily Life in the Late Ming Dynasty

晚明是个纵欲时代,又是古代生活美学的成熟期,探讨"欲"观念与晚明生活美学之间的关系显然极具意味。明中后期的理欲之辨,阳明心学为感性自由、人欲解放开出了一条道路;"人欲"、个体感性快乐在阳明后学尤其是泰州学派那里愈来愈受到肯定,"欲"的美学品性也逐渐凸显。以"欲"为本原的晚明生活美学,对于崇尚"天理"的宋明理学是一个"革命"。晚明文人日常生活之"欲"建立在生命快感之上,但又不仅满足于此,而是通往审美,具体表现为"体舒神怡"的审美标准,追求由身而心、身心合一的审美体验;"声色犬马"的性爱风气,及时行乐的情欲让文人获得了关于血肉感性生存的全部感觉,并由此引向生命自由的主题。对"欲"的关注极大地拓宽了文人的审美视野,但晚明的欲望审美始终充满矛盾,感性自由与伦理困惑的并存令晚明生活美学多了一分深意。

The late Ming Dynasty is an age of desire as well as the mature period of the life aesthetics in the ancient times. So it is significant to discuss the relation between the concept of ＂desire＂ and the life aesthetics in the late Ming Dynasty. In the debate of sense and desire in the late Ming Dynasty, Yangming philosophy had found a way for emotional freedom and the liberation of human desires. ＂Human desires＂ and ＂individual happiness＂ were focused more in the late period of the Yangming philosophy, especially in Taizhou School. The life aesthetics based on desire in this period was a revolution for the Song and Ming Neo-Confucianism which advocated ＂sense＂. The literati＇s desire in the daily life in this period was based on life pleasant sensation. They believed aesthetical standard as the ＂cozy body and joyous expression＂ and pursued the aesthetic experience which was originated from body to heart and then the integration of spirit and body. The desire of ＂Carpe diem＂ gave the literati all the feelings of flesh perceptual survival and lead to the theme of the life through it. The content of ＂desire＂ had widened the aesthetic horizon of the literati but the desire aesthetics of the late Ming Dynasty was filled with contradictions. The coexisting of perceptual free and ethical puzzle had brought profound meaning for life aesthetics in the late Ming Dynasty.