Kant's Theory Of "Aesthetic Disinterestedness"

British estheticians are the theory pioneer of "aesthetic disinterestedness" theory.They made a relatively systematic study on some issues such as the provisions of aesthetic activities,distinction between aesthetic activities and aesthetic pleasure,aesthetic inner mechanism,unity of aesthetic subjectivity and universality,etc."Aesthetic disinterestedness",proposed by Shaftesbury,and then developed by Hutcheson,Addison,Hume,Burke and others,has now become a relatively complete and mature aesthetic concept.But "aesthetic disinterestedness"theory from British estheticians has its non-thoroughness,showing a fundamental difference from Kant.The fundamental epistemology and moral theory of British estheticians' "aesthetic disinterestedness" theory are derived from Locke's epistemological idealism and emotional morality.The former makes most British estheticians adhere to the aesthetic sensualism and confuse the feeling and emotion,which failed to complete the transition of aesthetic subjectification;while the latter makes British estheticians build morality and aesthetics on the common emotional basis,which failed to have aesthetics really independent from the morality.Wandering between the subjectivity and objectivity of aesthetics,British estheticians failed to combine the subjectivity and universality together,indicating the particularity and complexity of aesthetics.It is obvious that only Locke's epistemological idealism and emotional morality are transcended,can aesthetic disinterestedness be really clarified.Kant's "aesthetic disinterestedness" theory is based on his deep thinking of people.Kant revealed that people's nobility and dignity consist in their tireless efforts paid and improvement achieved when attempting to transcend their own limitations and pursue self-discipline as a finite rational person.The existing mode of people's bounded rationality creates the emotional nature of people.As the source of ability and emotional power,emotion also promotes people to get rid of limitation and tend to improve themselves.Before Critique of Judgment was written,Kant has had a reflection of British estheticians' "aesthetic disinterestedness" theory.He first made a reflection of Locke's epistemological idealism from the epistemology point of view.He advocated "man-made natural law" and subjectification of the objective world to eliminate the division of the subject and the object,laying a foundation for the complete transition of aesthetic subjectification.Kant also reflected emotional morality from the perspective of moralism.He advocated the way of managing human will with purely moral law,excluding all the emotional and material factors from the basis of moral legislation,so that it is possible to have a strict distinction between aesthetics and aesthetic pleasure and morality and moral emotion.Reflective judgment and the aim in nature help Kant to reveal the prior principle of aesthetics,and enable Kant to expound the reason for aesthetic disinterestedness and how to produce disinterested aesthetic pleasure in addition to describing and concluding aesthetic pleasure.Kant's "aesthetic disinterestedness" theory is not an overnight product but becomes gradually mature after constantly thinking.Kant really clarified the "aesthetic disinterestedness" theory,drawing aesthetics and aesthetic pleasure from other activities and emotional pleasure to be independent.He advanced aesthetics from passive feeling to spontaneous aesthetic judgment,which completed the transition of aesthetic subjectification;he restored people's understanding,morality and aesthetic activities to different forms of judgment,delimited their respective functions and territory;he separated feeling from emotion,separated aesthetic pleasure from comfortable and good sensory pleasure to clarify the characteristics of aesthetic pleasure;starting from the subject's ability,Kant also pointed out that disinterested aesthetic pleasure is created by free play of imagination and sentiments,with the two in a proportional sentimental tone to encourage and promote each other.Through explaining aesthetic experience and interest,pure aesthetic judgment and aesthetic pleasure,dependence beauty and free beauty,natural beauty and artistic beauty and other issues,Kant provided a mild transition and channel for people to improve themselves from emotional charm to regular moral interest.Furthermore,Kant also revealed another kind of disinterested emotional state,that is,feeling of the sublime,showing a gradual increase of people from a simple emotional state to a rational state.By virtue of mathematical sublime and mechanical sublime,people advance themselves from having the cognitive ability and theoretical reason to having the appetitive ability and practical reason with more emotional morality.Aesthetics is not just about beauty and art,but also associated with teleology.On the one hand,disinterested aesthetic judgment provides a non-conceptual artistic handling different from the rational theory and a way to reflect on the nature,so that people can naturally imagine themselves as a natural system with purposivenss out of the mechanistic view of nature.On the other hand,from enjoying the natural beauty to further asking the ultimate goal of nature,people reflect on their own purpose,then people's super-emotional moral mission is also inspired.Kant combines aesthetic subjectivity and universality to clarify the particularity of aesthetic universality.Aesthetic judgment is a single judgment but requires the general approval of others;although it is difficult to achieve general approval of aesthetics,people still insist on their requirements and expectations for it obligatorily;general approval of aesthetics is a non-obligatory and moderate appeal.Kant found a prior foundation for general approval of aesthetics,that is,aesthetic common sense.On the one hand,aesthetic common sense provides a prior possibility for the general communication of aesthetics;on the other hand,aesthetic common sense makes pure aesthetic judgment possible by adjusting people's inner heart and striving to exclude personal preferences in the specific aesthetic judgment.Kant also further found the experience and basis for aesthetic universality.From appreciating the prototype to appreciating the arts and genius of beauty,aesthetics is gradually transiting from the prior level to the experiential world,and from the inner state to the real object.Consensus on aesthetic universality is also the process of continuous self-improvement and civilization.