From Nature To Landscape

Landscape is a word that everyone looks at for a long time but not see anything. Consequently, the majority of previous researches nearly “bracket” it. And it is usual to regard and use in an ossified way. This article attempts to jump out preconceived idea and confirms that the idea of landscape is a historical product. Simultaneously, this article intends to re-examine the build process of the idea of landscape in Britain and explores the reasons and requirements of the finding of landscape. Besides, it will briefly analyze the effects of the finding of landscape for British mainstream aesthetic standard in late 18 th century.Landscape has two basic meanings in existing research. First, landscape is used in a generalized way. This way is represented by William Hoskins. Its meaning is roughly equivalent to the environment of people live in. In this way, landscape is looked as the record of history. From the record, we can find the course of history. Second, landscape is used in an aesthetic meaning. This way is represented by Malcolm Andrews. It involves that people regard nature as an object of aestheticism. Also, people can attain aesthetic pleasure from nature. The related research is extended in the two directions. In the first meaning, there is no question of finding. Because we are always able to perceive the surrounding environment. This paper will explore the finding of landscape in British in second meaning.In 18th-century’s British, the attitudes of people regarding nature have some profound shift. Before this time, nature was seen as an object of terror. After this, nature becomes to the beautiful landscape. This change isn’t happened in a long period of time. This paper is intending to systematically analyze the reason for the change. Meanwhile, this paper is an attempt to define the concept of landscape.The paper includes these sections: First, it clears up in 18 th century British; there are some taste turnarounds in the attitude to think about nature. Next up, the paper has combed history, from Greece to Middle Ages, about the concept of nature. Throughout this period, nature was seen as personal god, horrible object, sinful object or an object that was being ignored. In short, nature isn’t a landscape.Subsequently, the paper proves the landscape in British that was being found in 18 th century and was base on the evidences of literature, painting, garden and so on. And it combined with the facts to find the multiple causes. The immediate reasons include the aesthetic paradigm found by Edmund Burke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the reverse prompts of environment disruption, and the illumination of Chinese landscape garden interest. At last, the paper will research the influence of the finding of landscape for the British aesthetic taste. The immediate effects include the raising of the nature’s aesthetic status, the landscape gardens become the mainstream gardens, and the countries become the new tourist resorts. On the whole, the paper makes the landscape, as the product of history, historicization again, and reproduces the real process of the landscape’s naissance. Meanwhile, the paper will uncover the antecedents and consequences of the finding of landscape.