中庸 미학에서 生生 미학으로―시경』을 중심으로 ―

Abstract

In East Asia, there was originally no study of aesthetics, but it cannot be said that there was no exploration of beauty. If we study the aesthetics of East Asia and limit the source to grasping the etymology and usage of the concept of beauty, the scope of aesthetics will inevitably be greatly reduced. In general, if aesthetics reveal the identity or characteristics of satisfaction(pleasure) that can be universally sympathized with, the concepts of sheng生(life) and le樂(satisfaction) can also be explored in the context of aesthetics. In this article, I would like to analyze the Shijing in the context of the origin(primacy) and wildness of life. This is because even if the concept of sheng生(life) is not used a lot in the Shijing, it contains abundant data on “the origin(primacy) and wildness of life.” At this time, life is not directly related to value norms, whether innate or acquired, but it represents the movement and vitality that make life alive. Through this vitality, one can continuously discover the vitality and meaning of life. This vitality and meaning are not limited to the literal meaning, but can be said to be enhanced by performing art activities such as dance and singing. This can be said to reveal the primacy and wildness of life, and it can be said to be a uniqueness that cannot be seen in the language of another literature. In this article, I would like to proceed with the discussion by naming these languages as “life aesthetics,” not “middle path aesthetics.”