A Comparative Study Of Wang Yangming And Kant's Theories On The Relationship Between Aesthetics And Moralit

This article attempts to conduct a comparative study of Wang Yangming’s and Kant’s theories on the relationship between aesthetics and morality.By comparing the similarities and differences in aesthetics and morality between Wang Yangming and Kant,it is found that Wang Yangming’s mind studies not only contain rich aesthetic connotations,but also present a harmonious integration of aesthetics and morality,ultimately leading to the realm of heaven and earth pursued by traditional Chinese philosophy.Kant,on the other hand,clarified the boundary between aesthetics and morality while also using aesthetics as a bridge and a symbol of morality.There was always a distance between aesthetics and morality,and ultimately had to rely on religious power to achieve morality,thus leading Kant’s philosophy to the realm of religion.On this basis,explore the possibility of the relationship between aesthetics and morality,and deepen our understanding of the complex interaction between aesthetics and morality,thereby providing a theoretical basis for contemporary solutions to the complex relationship between aesthetics and morality.This article is mainly divided into three parts for research:The first part compares and analyzes the moral theories of Wang Yangming and Kant.We mainly start from three perspectives: the foundation of moral theory,the theory of human nature,and moral emotions.Through comparison,we find similarities and differences in the moral theories of the two.Wang Yangming and Kant respectively built their moral theories on conscience and free will,and their different regulations on conscience and free will determined their different understandings of human nature theory,as well as their different understandings of moral emotions.Wang Yangming believed that "music" is both the motivation and the result of moral practice,Kant,on the other hand,believed that pleasant emotions cannot serve as a motivation for moral practice,but can only be the result of moral practice.Therefore,compared to Wang Yangming’s moral philosophy,Kant’s moral philosophy exposes the contradiction between what should be and what should be.The second part mainly analyzes the essence of beauty from the perspective of the aesthetic subject,focusing on a comparative study of how Wang Yangming and Kant constructed beauty.It mainly includes three aspects: the essence of aesthetic activities,the psychology of aesthetic subjects,and aesthetic emotions.From these three perspectives,examine the similarities and differences in the aesthetic theories of Wang Yangming and Kant.Wang Yangming and Kant respectively positioned aesthetic activities as reflecting on the mind,responding to objects,and making aesthetic judgments;Aesthetic psychology mainly explores the particularity of aesthetic activities from the perspective of the subject’s activities,and analyzes the different understandings of aesthetic activities between the two people based on the unique requirements for the inherent character of the aesthetic subject in the presentation of aesthetics;On the basis of the above,Wang Yangming believes that aesthetic activities bring about the emotion of "joy",which is not only a sensory pleasure but also a state of peace of mind.Kant believes that the aesthetic emotions brought about by aesthetic activities are divided into pleasure and sublimity,which are different from emotional pleasure and are the result of mutual coordination between the cognitive abilities of aesthetic subjects.The third part compares the relationship between aesthetics and morality between the two.Both Wang Yangming and Kant embody the pursuit of moral realm.In the process of pursuing moral realm,aesthetics plays different roles in the two ideologies.Because of his unique monism system,Wang Yangming makes aesthetics equal to morality and morality equal to aesthetics,thus realizing the harmony between aesthetic realm and moral realm,which is embodied as the realm of heaven and earth.Therefore,the aesthetic realm ultimately moves towards the realm of heaven and earth where all things are integrated.Kant believed that beauty is a symbol of morality,and aesthetics is the intermediate bridge to achieve moral realm.However,aesthetic activities cannot completely lead people towards morality,and the realization of morality also depends on the intervention of religion.Therefore,in the process of reaching moral realm,aesthetic realm ultimately depends on the power of religion.In Kant’s entire philosophical system,the ultimate direction is towards religious realm.The fourth part of this chapter mainly summarizes the previous comparative results,and combines with other scholars’ research on the relationship between aesthetics and morality to provide theoretical explanations for the promotion of the relationship between morality and aesthetics.