[ Author: Cai Yuanpei | Posted from: Selected Works of Cai Yuanpei | Click Count: 1375 | Update Time: January 9, 27 | Article Entry: Xie Meifang ]
A person's life is nothing more than the activity of the will, and the will is blind, and those who rely on it for closer observation, Therefore, it is emotion that is used for long-distance and side-view.
the expression of will is behavior. Among the behaviors, it is the most common to avoid death by one's own hygiene, and to seek benefits while avoiding harm; This kind of behavior, only common knowledge, can guide. Furthermore, it aims at the life and interests of all, and one's own life and interests depend on it. This kind of behavior, on the one hand, is due to intellectual care, knowing that everyone is dead and one cannot be the only child; Everyone is hurt and one cannot benefit alone. On the other hand, it is also driven by feelings, and it is unbearable to sit alone and watch everyone die, and it is unbearable to patent to watch everyone's harm. Further, if necessary, I am willing to give up my life to save everyone's death; I am willing to sacrifice my own interests for the harm of all, and forget all the differences between people and me and the relationship between life and death. This great and noble behavior is completely motivated by feelings.
everyone has feelings, but not all have great and noble behaviors, which is due to the weak emotional driving force. To turn weak into strong, thin into thick, needs to be nurtured. The tool of pottery cultivation is the object of beauty, and the function of pottery cultivation is called aesthetic education.
how can an object of beauty cultivate feelings? Because it has two characteristics: first, it is universal; The second is detachment.
If one person drinks a ladle of water, others will not get any points; If there is enough room for one person, others will not be able to stand side by side; This kind of material incompatibility encourages the difference between people and me and selfish care. Turning to the object of beauty is very different. Anyone who has a qualitative relationship between taste, odor and skin sensation is not based on beauty; The aesthetic feeling can only be aroused by the vision and hearing conveyed by photography and sound waves. Therefore, there is simply the concept of "the world is public"; Famous mountains and rivers, everyone has to visit; The setting sun and the bright moon make everyone enjoy it; The statues in the park and the pictures in the art gallery are enjoyed by everyone. Qi Xuanwang said that "being happy alone is not like being happy with others"; "If you are happy with less, you will not be happy with others"; Tao Yuanming called "the appreciation of strange writing"; This is the proof of the universality of beauty.
the flowers of plants are only for the preparation of fruits; As for plum, apricot, peach and plum, flowers are the most popular among poets. A flower dedicated for enjoyment, which has the function of being selected by others and cannot bear fruit. Animal feathers, so keep out the cold, people have the habit of making fur and weaving; However, the feather of the egret, the tail of the peacock, is designed for decoration. If only the palace could be sheltered from the wind and rain, why should it be carved and painted? If only the appliances could be used, why should they be patterned? If only the language can convey the meaning, why should we have poems with special tones? It can be proved that the function of beauty is beyond the scope of utilization.
There is universality to break people's preconceptions, and detachment to reveal the relationship between interests; Therefore, at an important juncture, there is a spirit of "wealth can't be lewd, poverty can't be moved, and power can't be bent"; What's more, there is the courage to "kill yourself to be benevolent" instead of "survive to harm benevolence"; This is completely independent of knowledge, but because of the cultivation of feelings, it is not from intellectual education, but from aesthetic education.
Therefore, it is indispensable for us to have an ordinary occupation in order to make use of the needs of good health; In my spare time at work, I have to read literature, listen to music and visit art galleries in order to reconcile knowledge and feelings. Only in this way can I know the value of life.
according to Cai Yuanpei's manuscript