A Study Of Richard Shusterman’s Somaesthetics

Richard Shusterman is an American pragmatist philosopher, who is internationally known for his philosophical aesthetics and Somaesthetics. Shusterman’s Somaesthetics originates from his Pragmatism philosophy. He reflected on and redefined philosophy, art and aesthetics, and connected them with the body. He finally put forward a new philosophical discipline:Somaesthetics. Somaesthetics pursuits a sensitive, active and aesthetic body. It contains three fundamental branches: analytical somaestheics, pragmatic somaesthetics and practical somaesthetics. He especially pays much attention to the practical somaesthtics. Somaesthetics is a new discipline, which needs to be developed and expanded. We found it has a few defects:(a) ignorance of the interactions between the body and the society; and(b) ignorance of the pain of the body; and(c)ignorance of the collective actions in the liberation of the body. We wish Somaesthetics can expand itself to pay close attention to the body’s experience in the society, the pain of the body and the necessity of the collective actions. We wish it can really promote the liberation and freedom of the body.