审美乌托邦:儒家制度美学思想及其内在困结

An Aesthetic Utopia:The Confucian Institutional Aesthetic Thought and Its Inherent Predicaments

儒家制度美学是一种以审美制度建构为关注核心、以审美功利主义为基调的美学视野。孔子依据仁学重构了具有审美乌托邦性质的礼乐文明,其中文艺审美具有根源性质。孟子进而从内在人性层面与外在国家政治层面,为儒家的审美乌托邦提供论证。荀子则以礼法一体的思路,使儒家制度美学具备了从知识话语向意识形态转化的可能。儒家审美乌托邦的实质是对周代礼乐文明的文化改制,儒家制度美学的实质即关于这一文化改制的思想布局与话语表达,是为实现儒家向往的好政治而对审美生活所做的规划。儒家制度美学有力地建构了古代中国审美文化图景,然而儒家思想的内在症结决定了审美乌托邦只能是一个关于政治、文化与审美的理想模型。

The Confucian institutional aesthetic thought developed from its vision of ＂external kings＂ （wai wang）. It took the construction of the aesthetic institution as its core concern and aesthetic utilitarianism as its keynote. The positive influence of Confucian aesthetics on the construction of the Chinese literary and artistic aesthetic institution could he traced hack to Han Dynasty. From then on, the institutional aesthetic thought gradually converted into the aesthetic ideology of the dynasty-state. However, during the Pre-Qin period, the ideas of Confucius, Mencius, and Tsunzi had constituted the basic framework of the institutional Confucian aesthetic thought. Confucius was enamored of the ritual（li）-musical（yue） civilization of Western Zhou Dynasty, and tried to base its new foundation on the origin of value, hence the sprout of Humaneness （ten） and imagination of an aesthetic utopia. From the perspective of Humaneness（ten）, the ideal state of politicalpractices is aesthetic, whereas the essence of the reconstruction of ritual（li）-musical（yue） civilization is an aesthetic utopia whose prospect and realization are both aesthetic. Literary and artistic aesthetic is thus given a sort of root. In this case, it is necessary to make constructive plans about its types, approaches and quality by setting up institutions of politics, society, and education. Mencius went further by describing an ideal society of ＂benevolent governance＂ （ten zheng）, which is the argument for an aesthetic utopia of inherent human nature and external national politics. In Mencius＇ view, ideal politics should be in accord with the harmony of ＂heaven＂ （tian）, ＂human nature＂ （zing） and ＂human mind＂ （xn）, and the ultimate purpose of building a state institution is to achieve moral perfection. In this aspect, literary and artistic aesthetic is the important constructive force in the realization of ideal politics. Intellectual elite, on the other hand, are the carriers and practitioners of Confucius institutional aesthetic thought. Integrating ＂rites＂ （li） and ＂law＂ （fa）, Tsunzi paid more attention to the construction of literary and artistic aesthetics, as its reasonable appeal cannot be based on human consciousness, but on the standards of the institutions of politics, education and society. Tsunzi emphasized the positive impact of aesthetic construction on upholding state subjectivity, and the co-generative relationship between literary and artistic aesthetics and state order. However, to ensure the aesthetic life and state will, corresponding functional departments must be set up and operated by Confucius intellectual elite. The essence of Confucius aesthetic utopia is the cultural transformation of ritual（H）-musical（yue） civilization of Zhou Dynasty, while Confucius institutional aesthetic is the aesthetic life plan for ideal politics. The latter is cultural aesthetics as well as political aesthetics. Accordingly, aesthetic issues must be discussed and solved along with cultural and political ones. But the development of cultural aesthetics could be hampered by this thought, aesthetic utilitarianism and Saint-King ideology. Thus, the institutional construction of literary and artistic aesthetics becomes an ideological machine to filter ideology, and the Confucius aesthetic utopia is doomed to be an ideal model of politics, culture and aesthetics.