论卡尔松科学认知主义理论的意义

On the Significance of Allen Carlson’s Scientific Cognitivist Theory

艾伦·卡尔松的科学认知主义理论,在哲学层面坚持对自然的客观性立场,在可操作层面强调自然科学知识对恰当自然审美欣赏的重要意义。它为自然审美的真正独立自觉奠定了坚实的理论基础,同时也为环境审美,即对群体自然内在诸要素功能性互依共生生态机制之感知、理解与体验,提供了最为关键的指导。它对于中国学者自觉反思中国古代自然审美传统中的主观主义倾向——以物比德、借景抒情和以物自适,具有重要的参照作用。科学认知主义理论目前并未完善,还有诸多方面有待改进。

Allen Carlson’s scientific cognitivist theory philosophically holds an objective position towards nature while stressing the role of scientific knowledge for appropriate aesthetic appreciation of nature at the practical level.It lays a solid theoretical foundation for the consciousness of aesthetic appreciation of nature and provides a crucial guide for aesthetic appreciation of environments in which people perceive,understand,and experience the eco-mechanism of mutual-independence and co-existence of internal elements within natural communities as well.The theory can be a helpful reference for Chinese scholars to initiatively reflect on the subjective tendency—comparing things in nature to virtues,using scenes in nature to express emotions,and finding peace in nature—of the traditional aesthetic appreciation of nature in ancient China.However,the theory needs further improvement in many aspects as it is still incomplete.