Education Inquiry

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Constructing an aesthetic discourse: Aesthetic

education where Daoism meets postmodernism

Ka Lee Carrie Ho

To cite this article: Ka Lee Carrie Ho (2022) Constructing an aesthetic discourse: Aesthetic
education where Daoism meets postmodernism, Education Inquiry, 13:1, 21-36, DOI:
10.1080/20004508.2020.1831286

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EDUCATION INQUIRY
2022, VOL. 13, NO. 1, 21–36
https://doi.org/10.1080/20004508.2020.1831286

Constructing an aesthetic discourse: Aesthetic education

where Daoism meets postmodernism
Ka Lee Carrie Ho
Social Sciences and Education, University of Saint Joseph, Macao, China

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

Despite the prevalence of aesthetic education as one of the main
developmental objectives in curricular worldwide, the mainstream
KEYWORDS
philosophical discourse on its definition is predominately framed Aesthetic experiences;
by western philosophy due to a paucity of cross-cultural studies aesthetic environments;
on the subject. The article aims to achieve a contemporary under­ rhizome; Daoism; Deleuze
standing of aesthetic education from both the Chinese and
Western aesthetic perspectives. Through the lens of postmodern­
ism, the relationship between Daoist aesthetics and the western
postmodern aesthetic perspectives, particularly the Deleuzian con­
cept of rhizome, is identified. Both aesthetic perspectives concern
de-authorship and promote self-consciousness/self-awareness. The
study reconceptualises the functions of aesthetic education with
the Chinese aesthetic philosophy that promotes the nurture of
better people through benevolence.

Introduction
Aesthetic education is a conventional practice in many curricula for encouraging
creativity and imagination (Amadio, Truong, & Tschurenev, 2006). However, previous
studies examining the philosophical aspects of aesthetics in the educational context are
rare. As part of a doctoral study on young children’s aesthetic experiences, this article
discusses the similarities and differences between the Chinese and Western aesthetic
perspectives to enhance the understanding on the essence of aesthetic education.

Aesthetics
Contrary to a common belief that aesthetics is originally a Western concept, aesthetics
in the West has a history of only about 300 years. Meanwhile in China, aesthetics has
a much longer historical root. According to Li (2010), Chinese aesthetics derives from
the Chinese character “beauty/beautiful” (mei 美), a word that is recorded in the oracle
script. According to the earliest Chinese dictionary Shuo Wen Jie Zi 說文解字 (Xu,
c.55 – c.149/1972) created in the late Han Dynasty, the word “beauty” is composed of
a sheep (yang 羊) sitting on the top of “largeness” (da 大), suggesting that “ a large
sheep is a beautiful sheep” (volume 4a). While “beautiful means delicious” (volume 5),

CONTACT : Ka Lee Carrie Ho [email protected] Social Sciences and Education, University of Saint Joseph,
Macao, China
© 2020 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (http://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any
medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
22 K. L. C. HO

“beauty” is considered synonymous to “good” (volume 12b). As such, aesthetics in the

Chinese perspective has been founded on the concept of beauty and good since the
word was coined.
The term aesthetics did not exist in the West before the 18th century. It was first
adopted by Alexander Baumgarten (Winston, 2010) in 1735 as a subject of philosophy
(Guyer, 2004). Aesthetics was once only “an area of scholarly study and inquiry” of arts
(Smith, 1970, p. x). Therefore, Western aesthetics as a branch of philosophy is “devoted
to conceptual and theoretical inquiry into art and aesthetic experience” (Levinson,
2003, p. 3). It was studied as a philosophical subject about systematic and logical
thinking of facts (Winston, 2010) until the mid-18th century, Kant (1987) became
one of the first persons to relate the term to beauty. The Western philosophical
argument on aesthetics is linked primarily to the imitation of truth, such as nature’s
beauty. Plato does not regard arts as imitation of any truth (Courtney, 1968) while
Aristotle (335 BCE/1992) advocates in The Poetic that art is imitation of life. This
disagreement notwithstanding, both philosophers conceive the argument on the basis
of personal cognition.
Nevertheless, ancient Chinese philosophers took a different stand. Beauty in the
traditional Chinese aesthetics is “not the ordinary form but significant form – natural
form that has acquired a socially-defined content” (Li, 1988, p. 36). Yixiang (artistic
imagery意象) is pivotal as Chinese aesthetics does not concern with “cognition or
imitation, but emotion and experience” (p. 72). Such Chinese perspective on the
subjectivity of beauty is similar to the stress on the subjective representations of feelings
of pleasure or displeasure in the Kantian aesthetics. However, Kant focuses on the
subjective feelings of pleasure (Kant, 1987) while the former on the act of expressing
emotions (Bo, 1980).1

Different humanistic views

Kant (1790/1987) moral philosophy that promotes positive freedom appreciates sub­
jectivity in aesthetic judgements and expressions of beauty. Beauty, in Kant’s perspec­
tive, is about “beautiful what we just LIKE” (p. 52, emphasis in original), which signifies
personal preference for things such as nature and food that we enjoy. He promotes
freedom of imagination in aesthetic experiences (Guyer, 2004), asserting that through
imagination, people can individualise their aesthetic judgements about the same object.
His proposition is the first attempt in the West to discuss the role of imagination in
aesthetic criticism.
In evaluating (appreciation) beautiful objects, Kant proposes that the process of
analysing our responses (self-awareness) towards beautiful objects produces the
knowledge of beauty (Winston, 2010). Regarding the impact of aesthetic experiences
on morality, Kant (1987) claims that “the beautiful prepares us to love something,
even nature, without interest; the sublime, to esteem it, even contrary to our
(sensible) interest” (p. 267). The aesthetic notion of Kant has become an anchor
of Western aesthetics within a humanistic perspective, which can be adopted by two
means: intuition and intelligence. While intuition seeks visual perception and emo­
tional expression, intelligence requires logical thinking in terms of regulation and
interpretation. This intuitive approach to Kant’s humanistic perspective on
 EDUCATION INQUIRY 23

aesthetics (about beauty and self-awareness) shares similarities with the Chinese
aesthetic perspective, except that Chinese aesthetics has developed a stronger social
and educational basis.
From the Chinese aesthetic perspectives, beauty lies in harmony between nature,
social activities and communal rituals (Zhou, 1997). Li (2010) claims that ancient
Chinese rituals have constituted the concept of mei (beauty 美), especially the
“communal totemic dance” (p. 5), which is regarded as one of the rituals that “took
disparate individual sensuous existence and sensory activities and knitted them
consciously together” (p. 6). Thus, through “committing to memory and rehearsing”
(p. 3) the ritual, mei appears when individual skills and communal cooperation are
maturing. Besides, Confucius (Sheng-Bin, 2012) claims that poetry as a generic art
form performs the functions of xing (興), guan (觀), qun (群), and yuan (怨) (in the
chapter Yang-Huo of the Analects, 140 BCE). Xing (興) refers to a natural object that
can trigger some principles guiding moral-cultivating thoughts which are then turned
into words of a poem. Guan (觀) means that by reading a poem, one can observe the
aspirations of the poet. Quan (群) refers to the practice of reading one’s own poem to
other poets. This practice may allow other poets to know this poet through the
aspiration suggested in the poem. Similarly, this poet can also get to know what
kind of person the other poets are so that they can avoid isolating friends or following
the crowd (the trend) blindly. Lastly, yuan (怨) refers to how poets express their
discontent with the reality through poetry. These functions confirm the idea that
through artistic writing, people can create a community where they can express their
aspirations and resentment, and familiarise with other creators through sharing their
works. Thus, human consciousness, intention, and individual will can be aroused and
unified, contributing to a harmonised community. Beauty in the ancient Chinese
context consists of both beautiful objects and aesthetic appreciation that was “inse­
parable from perception” (p. 10). The Chinese aesthetic tradition “emphasises the
moderation of violent sensuality, the rationality inherent in the perceptual senses, and
the social inherent from the nature” (p. 10), hence forming a humanistic notion of
emotions and experiences of nature’s beauty. Although both Chinese and Kantian
aesthetics adopt a humanistic perspective, the Kantian perspective seems to emphasise
moral development on the personal level (Kant, 1987). In contrast, the Chinese
perspective is always social and communally grounded. These similarities and differ­
ences in the humanistic perspectives on aesthetics, such as the interest in nature’s
beauty, cognition and emotions through intuitive perceptions (in both the Chinese
and Western perspectives), provide a platform for a cross-cultural discourse on
aesthetics in the postmodern paradigm.
Postmodernism refers to an art-related movement that emerged after the period of
“modern” in the late 20th century (Oxford Dictionaries online, 2014). The movement
challenges the dominated practice of modernism by criticising culture, literature, art,
philosophy, and architecture. This challenge grows into a way of thinking that critiques
all master narratives (Lyotard, 1984) and promotes multiplicity (Baudrillard, 1994).
Postmodernism even entails thought that is provisional with continuity (Vattimo,
1998). Considering Piaget’s (1960) suggestion that developmental stages should allow
flexibility and variables, this study focuses on the postmodern aspects of “changes”,
“multiplicities”, and “co-constructed” knowledge (Creswell, 2013). As knowledge in
24 K. L. C. HO

postmodernism is co-created through “multiple ways of knowing” (Creswell, 2013,

p. 36), the article now moves on to the discussion about the cross-cultural study of
aesthetics.

An encounter between Daoism and the postmodern aesthetic perspective

After the 18th century, Western aesthetic theories developed into various schools of
thought including instrumentalism, mimesis, formalism, expressionism and postmo­
dernism. Instrumentalism concerns art with rules (Dickie, 1997). Formalism (Bell,
1914; Kant, 1987) focuses on colour, lines, shapes and texture instead of content or
meaning, while mimesis (Aristotle, 335 BCE/1992; Plato, 380 BCE/2009) considers
art the reproduction of the sameness of natural objects. Expressionists use distorted
reality to express their own emotions, feelings, and ideas (Collingwood, 1938;
Croce, 1902/1909; Tolstoy, 1896/1960). These schools of thought represent various
philosophical concerns over either man-made or natural objects. These four per­
spectives focus on the representation of art, but postmodernism (Baudrillard, 2005;
Hutcheon, 1988; Jameson, 1991; Lyotard, 1984) differs by advocating that art should
embrace self-reflexivity, inter-subjectivity, decentredness, and multiplicities in terms
of culture, nations, relations, and meanings (Shusterman, 2003; Townsend, 1997).
Self-reflexivity in the postmodern perspective entails constant self-consciousness or
self-awareness. Inter-subjectivity refers to the belief that knowledge and meanings
should be co-constructed instead of being practised through individual thinking
alone. Decentredness is advocated by Lyotard (1984) through his de-authorship
concept of denial with the grand narrative. This concept is in synchronisation
with the idea of multiplicities regarding the plurality of realities. These postmodern
perspectives of western aesthetics share similarities with a stream of Chinese
aesthetics – Daoism.
The aesthetics of Daoism emerged in the same period as Confucianism. Daoist
central figures Laozi (老子) and Zhuangzi (莊子) promoted the understanding of
Dao (the Way道), a spiritual status of “wu ”, “indeterminacy” or nothingness無)
(Laozi, 2008) that “cannot be captured in language, concepts, or names, but can only
be grasped and experienced by the creative intuition of a free spirit” (Li, 2010, p. 105).
In Dao de jing (Book of Dao道德經), Laozi (551 BCE/2011) writes about how every­
thing becomes “the oneness” (or being as one 一, Ames and Hall’s translation), the
concept of things becoming a unity (Chapter 39).
Of old there were certain things that realized oneness:
The heavens in realizing oneness became clear;
The earth in realizing oneness became stable;
The numinous in realizing oneness became animated;
The river valleys in realizing oneness became full;
The lords and kings in realizing oneness brought proper to the world.
[Tian de yi yi qing 天得一以清; De de yi yi ning 地得一以寧;
Shen de yi yi ling 神得一以靈; Gu de yi yi yíng 谷得一以盈;
Wanwu de yi yi sheng 萬物得一以生; Hou wang de yi yiwei tianxia zhen 侯王得一以為
天下貞。]. (Ames & Hall, 2003 - Laozi's Daodejing Chapter 392008)

According to the criticism by Chen and Hou (2009), Laozi’s concept of the oneness
(or being as one 一) refers to the free spiritual status of Dao. Some Chinese
 EDUCATION INQUIRY 25

aestheticians suggest that Dao constitutes an aesthetic perspective of “truth, kindness,

and beauty ” (Zhen, shan, mei 真, 善, 美) (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 100). In the Daoist
perspective, truth refers to the non-artificial; kindness means good behaviours or kind
intentions, and beauty is specified as nature’s beauty. However, among the various
teachings of Laozi’s Dao, wu (indeterminacy無) seems a more useful idea for a study
of aesthetics.
Regarding wu (indeterminacy無) (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 2), Laozi (551
BCE/2011) writes “the Way is always “not-doing”, yet there is nothing it does not
do.” (Dao chang wuwei er wu bu wei 道常無為而無不為) (Chapter 37). This not-
doing is Laozi’s wuwei (“non-assertive activity” 無為) (Hall & Ames, 1998, p. 167).
It means something will be realised in a state of doing (or being or thinking of)
nothing (無為wuwei). Although this sounds contradictory, Laozi means something
will be “done” even when nothing is done purposefully because by being in the
state of nothingness, humans will be situated in a state of going with the flow of
nature (順應自然shunying ziran), which is wuwei (non-assertive activity 無為). It
achieves the essence of the status of Dao: a human is in unity with nature (tian ren
he yi 天人合一) (Laozi, 551 BCE/2011). This unity is essential because Laozi
believes that when a human being can have freedom of mind, body and soul
and attain the status of unifying with nature, this person will then be freed from
desire and get into the state of wuyu (“objectless desiring” 無欲) (Hall & Ames,
1998, p. 167), meaning the thoughts and behaviours of this person will no longer
be intended for self-advantages (e.g., richness, fame or authority). According to
the main idea of Daoism, not seeking personal gain is contradictory to the short-
sighted practice of seeking instant benefits. Humans can achieve wuwei (non-
assertive activity 無為) and wuyu (objectless desiring 無欲) (Hall & Ames, 1998,
p. 167) through constant self-reflexivity. According to Hall and Ames (1998), when
humans are in the status of wuwei and wuyu, they will be “dissolving the dichot­
omy of self and others to integrate fully into the continuity of existence” (p. 167).
The Way of Daoism fulfils cohesion and harmony with nature, individuals and
society aesthetically (Chen & Hou, 2009).

Shared nature in Dao and Deleuzo-Guattarian rhizomatic becoming

Way-making (Dao) gives rise to continuity, continuity gives rise to difference, difference
gives rise to plurality. And plurality gives rise to the manifold of everything that is
happening (wanwu [萬物]). (Ames & Hall, 2003, p. 142)

According to the interpretation of Ames and Hall, achieving Dao (the Way 道) is not
a “one-off deal” but a continuous process. To Laozi, it is a life-long process for an
individual to fulfil the status of Dao, so a person who pursuits the spirit of Dao has to
practice wuwei (non-assertive activity 無為) and wuyu (objectless desiring 無欲)
daily. This process to fulfil Dao constitutes a life-long process of becoming. Wong
(2014), who has gained insights into Daoism through her intensive research on
Chinese paintings, regards “[t]his emanative nature of Dao as “materiality” on
a continuum of becomings” (p. 93). Her claim connects Daoism to the Deleuzo-
Guattarian concept of rhizome through the concept of becoming.
26 K. L. C. HO

Four postmodern characteristics shared between the aesthetic concept of Daoism

and the concept of rhizome
The aesthetics of Dao in Daoism advocates “the enjoyment of nature” (Lin, 1967, p. 33).
It consists of philosophical concepts such as decentralism (Laozi, 551 BCE/2011,
Chapter 34; Zhuangzi, 369 BCE/1996, Chapter Autumn floods), self-reflexivity (Laozi,
551 BCE/2011, Chapter 33), “interthing inter-subjectivity” (transcendental subjectivity)
(Pang-White, 2009, p. 71), and anti-scientific politics (Laozi, 551 BCE/2011, Chapter 18,
65). Surprisingly, these characteristics of Daoist aesthetics relate to the aesthetics of
postmodernism more than the traditional realm of Plato’s or Aristotle’s philosophy.
Four characteristics bridge the postmodern perspective of Deleuzo-Guattarian rhizome
(Deleuze & Guattari, 1987) and the aesthetic concept of Daoism, i.e. intuition, self-
reflexivity, inter-subjectivity and multiplicities (about de-authorship).

Intuition and self-reflexivity (or self-consciousness)

He [Deleuze] conceives intuition as a deliberate reflective awareness or willed self-
consciousness, a concentrated and direct attention to the operations of consciousness (in
contrast with mediated ‘observations of’ consciousness by consciousness in a quest for
transparency of thought to itself). (Stagoll, 2010, p. 136, emphasis in original)

Stagoll (2010) explains that Deleuzian intuition is not a basic instinct but rather
a deliberate act of constant self-reflexivity and self-consciousness. This understanding
of intuition is tied closely to the Daoist interpretation of wu and wuyu. In Daoism,
through continuous practice of wuwei (non-assertive activity 無為) with self-
consciousness, a human can achieve the status of wu (nothingness 無), also known as
Dao (the Way道). According to Chen and Hou (2009), wuyu (objectless desiring 無欲)
is intuitive thinking that refers to a self-conscious mind which is non-calculative for
self-benefits. When people will to be freed from desire, they are in the state of wuyu, so
that everything they do is wuwei, a status where they will be open to their feelings and
surroundings. Then they can engage with the beautiful surroundings and enjoy the
peace of mind – this is a fulfilment of Dao. However, the status of Dao cannot be
achieved by a one-off enactment but a life-long process of practising wuwei and wuyu.
This Daoist practice of Dao links to the concept of becoming in the Deleuzo-Guattarian
rhizome, given that they both involve a perpetual (continuous) process (Deleuze &
Guattari, 1987) in non-linear time and space. Similarly, Geertz (1983) claims that “The
sense of beauty … [is] brought into actual existence by the experience of living in the
midst of certain sorts of things to look at, listen to, handle, think about, cope with, and
react to” (p. 118). He suggests that aesthetic experiences are accompanied by self-
awareness and are cognitive, sensory and emotional by nature.

Inter-subjectivity
Regarding inter-subjectivity, Deleuze claims that subjectivity “is not given; it is
always under construction” (Boundas, 2010, p. 274). This notion of inter-
subjectivity relates to the “interthing inter-subjectivity” (transcendental subjectivity)
(Pang-White, 2009, p. 71) of Daoism. According to the idea of unity with nature
(being as one天人合一tian ren he yi), a human (ren 人) is encouraged to go with the
flow of nature (shunying ziran 順應自然), which includes the “heavens” (tian 天),
 EDUCATION INQUIRY 27

“earth” (de 地), and “numinous” (wu 物) for the achievement of Dao (the Way道)
(Laozi, 551 BCE/2011, Chapter 39). Daoism thus advocates a state of mind where
humans are capable of being reflexive when they are living in the inter- and intra-
related environments of multiplicities.

Multiplicities
The philosophical concept of rhizome (Deleuze & Guattari, 1987) is the best for
illuminating the idea of multiplicities. This reinterpretation of rhizomatic plant
roots pertains to the complex idea of multiple entrances and exits regarding things,
time and space. In The Thousand Plautus, Deleuze and Guattari (1987) explain that
things, knowledge and power do not develop in linearity but rhizomatically and
contextually. Within the postmodern perspective where there is not only one uni­
versal truth, multiple realities are visualised through the image of rhizomes that also
signifies the characteristics of decentredness (e.g., de-authorship). Similarly, the con­
cept of wu in Daoism goes along with the rhizomatic idea of non-linearity and
decentredness (Ran, 2008). Chen and Hou (2009) provide a helpful Chinese transla­
tion for the multiplicities between the concept of the oneness (or being as one合一he
yi) and the concept of rhizomes, where “heavens”, “earth”, “numinous”, “river val­
leys”, “lords and kings” can be perceived as one root, namely the oneness (Ames &
Hall, 2003 - Laozi's Daodejing Chapter 39).
As Chinese traditional values and ideologies are deeply rooted, Chinese aesthetics
has a close relation with Chinese philosophies (e.g., Confucianism, Daoism). However,
in this study, based on the shared humanistic notions and postmodern aspects, Chinese
aesthetics is considered in connection with the postmodern perspective on western
aesthetics. The relationship of art with aesthetics cannot be defined or limited by
theories (Dissanayake, 1988; Greene, 1971). Thus, by adopting a postmodern perspec­
tive on intuition, inter-subjectivity, self-reflexivity and multiplicity, the study can con­
tribute to the reconceptualisation of the aesthetic functions of education.

Functions of aesthetics
There are different thoughts about the functions of aesthetics. In the West, an aesthetic
experience refers to either a process of catharsis (Aristotle, 335 BCE/1992) that occurs
through emotions of pity and fear aroused by a Greek tragedy or just the acquisition of
personal pleasure (Kant, 1987) as an emotional response towards an artwork. After
three centuries, such aesthetic notion of pleasure is still valued, particularly in the latest
nationwide aesthetic education advocacy in Taiwan. In order to revive education with
creativity, Taiwanese educators and researchers determine pleasure as the learning goal
of aesthetic education in the recent education curriculum reform (Lin, 2014). The
Taiwanese government has been running a 15-year programme to implement aesthetic
education with the concept of pleasure throughout all levels of education since 2011,
from preschool to university levels, including pre- and in-service teaching training.
Besides, Dewey (1934) proposes that aesthetic education is an education of empathy as
well as creativity. These two are internationally accepted goals for aesthetic education
(Amadio et al., 2006; Benavot, 2004; Curriculum Development Council, 2006).
28 K. L. C. HO

Meanwhile, this article proposes the inclusion of the Chinese perspectives as one of the
goals.
From a Confucian perspective, both arts and aesthetics are educational. Confucius
argues that education is a process of “making the culture of rites and music self-
conscious” (Li, 2010, p. 39) and also serves as a way of passing the culture on to the
younger generation. According to
Xúnzi (荀子), the core mission of art is to achieve aesthetic education, so that “li ”
(rites 禮儀 lǐyí, rituals of propriety 禮節 lijie) (Li, 2007) and “yi ” (righteousness義) can
be passed down the generations (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 88). In Confucius’ Analects 12.1
(Lunyu 論語, 500 BCE/1979), lǐ is an integral part in the idea of ren (benevolence 仁).
Similarly, Zhuangzi (369 BCE/1996) of Daoism proposes (p. 16) the idea to “love one
another” (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 118). Thus, Chinese aesthetics serves the aim of
fostering people of ren (benevolence 仁) by cultivating courtesy and righteousness.
Modern Chinese aesthetic educators (i.e., like Wang Guowei王國維, Cai Yuanpei蔡元
培 and Zhu Guangqian朱光潛) applied the Daoist perspective of wuwei (non-assertive
activity 無為) to aesthetic education in the early 20th century (Ran, 2008). Moreover,
Zhu believed that aesthetic education could rebuild the human mindset through
“perceptual knowledge” (Ran, 2008, p. 23) so as to help people reconstruct their
world vision and national values. Therefore, aesthetics in Chinese perspectives is always
education-based with a function of teaching people to live by the virtue of benevolence
in the hope of building a better society.
Psychologist Abraham Maslow shares similar thought about the Chinese perspectives
on aesthetic functions. In The Farther Reaches of Human Nature, Maslow (1971) claims
that “the concept of creativeness and the concept of the healthy, self-actualising, fully
human person seems to become closer and closer together, and may perhaps turn out to
be the same thing. … Education through art may be especially important not so much
for turning out artists or art products, as turning out better people” (p. 57).
Furthermore, UNESCO’s International Bureau of Education (Amadio et al., 2006)
also reports that aesthetics is beneficial for not only overall personal development but
also socio-economic progress.

In recent years, international organisations, ministries of education and curriculum devel­

opers across the world have increasingly emphasised the potential social benefits of
aesthetic education. They also have an understanding of its expected contribution towards
socio-economic development and various other aspects. Those aspects are the fight against
poverty, the promotion of universal values and cultural understanding, or the fostering of
local cultural values and identities. Hence, certain forms of aesthetic learning are therefore
expected to positively transfer to other learning areas. This will be beneficial for the overall
development of individuals and also for the well-being of society. (Amadio et al.,
2006, p. 19)

UNESCO reports that aesthetic education can become an intervention to social pro­
blems related to poverty and social cohesion, if the humanistic aspects of aesthetics,
such as emotional engagements and self-consciousness ethics, are involved. In other
words, aesthetic education is essential in education because it does not only stimulate
children’s creative and imaginative power, aesthetic experiences also facilitate the
exercise of emotional engagements and self-consciousness, which may contribute to
character building.
 EDUCATION INQUIRY 29

Aesthetic experiences and aesthetic environments

In discussing how humans experience and respond to aesthetic experiences, the Oxford
Handbook of Aesthetics (Levinson, 2003) states that ways to distinguish aesthetic states
of mind from others are:
… disinterestedness, or detachment from desires, needs and practical concerns; non-
instrumentality, or being undertaken or sustained for their own sake; contemplative or
absorbed character, with consequent effacement of the subject; focus on an object’s form;
focus on the relation between an object’s form and its content or character; focus on the
aesthetic features of an object; and figuring centrally in the appreciation of works of arts.
(p. 6–7)

Aesthetic experiences
According to Winston (2010), the perspective of Kant highlights that humans could
experience nature’s beauty through “a set of necessary, inter-related conditions or
‘moments’, all of which happen in the human mind” (p. 20). These experiences of
beauty are the results of “harmonious free play” concerning “our capacity for under­
standing and our capacity for imagination” (p. 20). To summarise the aesthetic state of
mind or how humans undergo and respond to aesthetic experiences, some refer to this
as a perceptual focus on experience under certain conditions (Smith, 1970), while
others suggest this is an activity of the nervous system (Langer, 1962). However,
Hutcheson (1738) stated that aesthetic responses were sensory, not rational, while
Burke (1757) reassessed Hutcheson’s statement by associating aesthetic responses
with emotional engagements rather than merely with perception. Burke’s argument
affirms the importance of emotional engagements in aesthetic experiences, lending
support to the claim that imitation-oriented arts activities cannot be counted as
aesthetic experiences.
The shift in the debate over the nature of aesthetic experiences towards the education
contexts accounts for the increase in child-orientedness in Western notions of aesthetic
experiences. Heid (2005) portrays aesthetic experiences as “a-ha” moments (p. 50) in
which children learn about concentration, mind and body connections, and critique
with others. Lim (2005) furthers the idea by identifying three dimensions in children’s
aesthetic experiences: a sense of awareness, art materials, and convergence of ideas and
feelings. Contrary to the similar description of children’s aesthetic experiences given by
Heid (2005) and Lim (2005), Bundy (2003) has explicitly characterised aesthetic experi­
ences as “the experience of intimacy” (p. 173) rather than “aesthetic encounters” that
only remain “at a gut level” (p. 172), identifying three categories of aesthetic encounters:
“animation, connection and heightened awareness” (p. 176). People who experience
animation feel “more alive, more alert” (p. 180); connection refers to a time “when the
percipient (via senses and feelings) experiences a connection to an idea stimulated by
the work but not necessarily directly contained in it” (p. 180) while heightened aware­
ness is “a product of the simultaneous experience of animation and connection” (p.
180). These educators define aesthetic experiences in terms of emotions and feelings but
not merely cognitive experiences. Therefore, while aesthetics can be “a subject of
inquiry” (Smith, 1970, p. x), an inquiry into aesthetic experiences should involve
cognition, sensory perceptions and feelings.
30 K. L. C. HO

In Chinese perspectives of aesthetics, the Daoist aesthetic perspective distinguishes

itself with its well-rounded concept of aesthetic experiences. Chen and Hou (2009)
identifies four themes of Daoist aesthetics about emotional engagements and self-
consciousness, in which three relate to aesthetic experiences, while the other to the
aesthetic environment.

(1) “大音希聲” (da yin xi sheng) (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 102) [The greatest sound is
ever so faint (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 41)] – In Chapter 41 of Dao de jing
(Book of Dao 道德經), Laozi explains that aesthetic experiences, like the sound
of Dao (the Way道), are not easily audible to the ear but perceptible if listened
with “personal association [to the past], imagination, emotional engagements
and thinking” (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 103). Such interpretation leads to an
understanding of aesthetic experiences as not only those of one’s cognition but
also of emotions and self-consciousness (or self-awareness), suggesting that
feelings and emotional engagements are indispensable in exploring aesthetic
experiences.
(2) “美言不信” (mei yan buxin) (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 105) [Eloquent words are
not credible (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 81)] – In Chapter 81 of Dao de jing
(Book of Dao 道德經), Laozi says “Credible words are not eloquent, eloquent
words are not credible” (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 2), a critical claim against
hypocritical behaviour to mean that virtuous and ethical people do not like to
speak with fancy words. Thus, in Chen and Hou’s (2009) view, Laozi sees
intuitive presentation as a kind of truthfulness. This implies that aesthetic
experiences hinge on the truthful experiences with one’s surroundings through
the mind, body and soul.
(3) “正反相成” (zheng fan xiang cheng) (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 107) [“Positive and
negative bring about each other” (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 2)] – This theme
comes from “difficult and easy complement each other” (nanyi zhi xiang cheng ye
難易之相成也) (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 2) in Chapter 2 of Dao de jing
(Book of Dao 道德經). The phrase means that everything has two opposite sides,
such as the difficult and easy, as well as the positive and negative.
(4) “有無相生” (you wu xiangsheng) (Chen & Hou, 2009, p. 111) [“determinacy and
indeterminacy give rise to each other” (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 2)]. In
relation to the third theme, this one comes from the idea that “determinacy (you)
and indeterminacy (wu) give rise to each other” [you wu zhi xiangsheng ye 有無
之相生也] (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 2) in Chapter 2 of Dao de jing (Book of
Dao 道德經). According to Ames and Hall, Laozi argues though determinacy
(you) and indeterminacy (wu) are non-ontological categories, they are “conven­
tional distinctions that have explanatory force in giving an account of how things
hang together” (Ames & Hall, 2003, Chapter 2).

Based on the Laozi’s idea that two opposite sides bring about each other, Chen and
Hou. (2009) suggest that the “ [v]irtual and reality bring about each other [xushi xiangzi
虛實相資]” (p.107), which is the third characteristic of Daoist aesthetic experiences.
Taking the Chinese landscape painting (Shanshuihua 山水畫) as an example, Chen and
Hou explain that the first brushstroke of the ink breaks through the void of thought on
 EDUCATION INQUIRY 31

the white paper, meaning that once the black ink makes contact with the white paper,
the different shades of the ink determine the space between the black (the ink) and the
white (the paper). The marks of the ink (e.g., drawing or words) become a reality (the
form, line, or shape) while the blank space on the white paper denotes the virtual. In
Chinese painting, the oppositional colour of black and white sketches an artwork, and
allows the yixiang (imaginary environment 意象) to emerge. The first three themes of
Daoist aesthetics outline the core elements of aesthetic experiences in the Daoist view:
imagination, emotions, thinking, truthful expressions, and the coexistence of the real
and virtual.

Aesthetic environments
First of all, the aesthetic environment is different from environmental aesthetics; the
former is the space that facilitates aesthetic experiences (Ho, 2019) while the latter
a study on how to appreciate the beauty of nature (Stanford Encyclopedia of
Philosophy, 2020). In Western education, aesthetic environments, particularly in early
childhood education, generally refer to the physical environment (Nutbrown, 2013).
The physical environment refers typically to a safe space as an “aesthetically rich and
diversified environment” (Curriculum Development Council, 2006, p. 20). Therefore, it
is common for kindergarten classrooms to be decorated with children’s artworks and
colourful learning aids. However, if educators have insufficient knowledge of aesthetics,
these physical environments can only reflect the “mass marketing and craft-store
culture” that “does not challenge children aesthetically to respond deeply to the natural
world, their cultural heritage, or their inner worlds” (Tarr, 2001, p. 3). It indicates that
the natural world can be a physical and outer world while the inner worlds can be
interpreted as intangible worlds. Similarly, the aesthetic environment in the perspective
of Daoism is twofold: the physical space and intangible space.
In The Contemporary Development of Aesthetic Education, Ran (2008) suggests that
the achievement of aesthetic experiences occurs in various ways and methods, not
limited to specific time and space. According to Chen and Hou. (2009), from the
Daoist perspective, the physical space of aesthetic environments is known as “you ”
(determinacy有) and the intangible space as “wu ” (indeterminacy or nothingness 無)
(p. 237), reflecting the idea that “determinacy (you) and indeterminacy (wu) give rise to
each other [you wu zhi xiangsheng ye 有無之相生也]” (Ames & Hall, 2003; Laozi, 551
BCE/2011, Chapter 2). Inspired by Chinese architecture, Chen and Hou. (2009) explain
the idea that “determinacy (you) and indeterminacy (wu) produce each other” (Ames &
Hall, 2003, Chapter 2) in terms of the physical building and the interior space of
a building. They see the physical building as the determinacy and the interior space
the indeterminacy. For example, the furniture in the room is the determinacy while its
intangible space comprising the length, width and height the indeterminacy.
Indeterminacy exists as long as determinacy does in space and they always co-exist.
The concept links to the third characteristics of Daoist aesthetic experiences as afore­
mentioned. As illustrated in the Chinese landscape painting (Shanshuihua 山水畫), the
image shown in a painting relies on both the white paper and the ink (brush strokes)
that coexist at the same time. The space of the whiteness (indeterminacy) accentuates
the shapes in black (determinacy). At the same time, the shapes in black contrast with
the whiteness of the paper. Together, the black and white unify as a picture. A painting
32 K. L. C. HO

of Tangshixia’s (唐石霞, 1904 − 1993) collection (Tang, 1993) is a good example.

Although the painting dates back to the Qing Dynasty, with the white paper turned
yellowish grey, it still clearly presents how the ink and the space of the white paper
highlight each other to create a yixiang (imaginary environment意象) portraying
a temple in a quiet forest.
The idea that determinacy and indeterminacy coexist contributes to the study of the
functions of the aesthetic environment. Architecture is a clear example of aesthetic
environments because aesthetic experiences take place in a physical environment, which
should also coexist with an interior or intangible space. Malaguzzi (1996) describes
aesthetic experiences as “spaces for relations, options, and emotional and cognitive
situations that produce a sense of well-being and security … which reflects the ideas,
ethics, attitudes and culture of the people who live in it.” (p. 40). According to prior
research, the intangible aesthetic environment, particularly in an education context,
refers to the opportunity to exercise decisiveness, introspectiveness and empathy (Ho,
2017), which leads to the power relationship among the stakeholders (Ho, 2019).

Conclusion
The article has discussed the history of aesthetics in the Chinese and Western con­
texts. While both perspectives consist of humanistic notions of emotions and experi­
ences of nature’s beauty, Chinese aesthetics differs due to its social-educational basis.
Furthermore, four common aspects are identified between the Chinese aesthetics of
Daoism and the Deleuzian concept of rhizome in postmodernism, specifically con­
cerning the educational context, including becoming, intuition, self-consciousness,
inter-subjectivity and multiplicities (in relation to de-authorship). Such philosophical
connection contributes to the reconceptualisation of aesthetic functions in education.
By recognising both emotional engagements and self-consciousness as essential in
aesthetic experiences, it is believed that the aesthetic environment can refer to both
the physical and intangible spaces, with the latter leading to the reconceptualisation of
aesthetic functions guided by the Chinese concept of ren (benevolence 仁). As such,
instead of only focusing on creativity and imagination, aesthetic education in curri­
cular worldwide can revive with a humanistic mission of fostering better people for the
community.

Note
1. According to Chapter 16 “The Great Preface” of the Book of Songs, some unknown scholars
of the Han Dynasty (Columbia University, 2002/2020 Asia for Educators) state clearly that
emotions are revealed through various Chinese art forms: The poem is the place to which
one’s preoccupations go. Within the mind it is a preoccupation; emerging in language it is
a poem. The emotions are stirred and take form in words. If words are not enough, we speak
them in sighs. If sighs are not enough, we sing them. If singing is not enough, then
unconsciously our hands dance them and our feet tap them.
 EDUCATION INQUIRY 33

Notes on contributor
Dr. Ka Lee Carrie Ho is an Assistant Professor of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Education at
University of Saint Joseph, Macao. She awarded a MA in East/West Theatre Studies from
Middlesex University (UK), and an EDD in Early Childhood Education from The Education
University of Hong Kong. Her research interests span the areas of transdisciplinary arts-based
research on aesthetics, education, spirituality, SEN support, and applied theatre through the lens
of postmodernism.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

ORCID
Ka Lee Carrie Ho http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4360-2920

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