Plain Beauty

From the aesthetic viewpoint, this paper analyses the aesthetic pursuit, aesthetic characteristics, and aesthetic value in Ji Xian-lin's prose in order to explore and explain the "plain beauty" in his prose writing. In poetry appreciation, plain is an aesthetic category and its features include easiness, friendliness, simplicity and understatement. From the aspect of being a man, "plain" shows a man's breadth of heart, sentiment, modesty and amiability, indifference to fame and wealth, understanding and being natural. It is a man's reserve, happy state and is also a kind of rejected bustle and the pursuit of the value of peaceful mind. Ji Xian-Lin's prose writing is greatly influenced by Chinese traditional ideas of "plain" beauty. As a simple man, he tends to be "plain" both as a man and as a writer. And in the long-term of creation, he sticks to the creation concept of being "simple and natural", making his prose show the aesthetic features of "plain beauty" such as, amiable, friendly natural and pure. The aesthetic characteristics are mainly in three aspects: one is "plain" but rich in philosophizing; second is "the style of plain beauty" reflects his unique personality beauty and the third is plain and elegant artistic conception. The characteristics of "plain beauty" in his prose agree with the simple aesthetic tastes and artistic pursuit of the Chinese ancient literary creation; and it also accords with the connotation interpretation of "plain" beauty given by the contemporary literary theorists, but it is also unique. His prose truly reveals history and true life. And the plain beauty of his prose reflects his inheritance to the Chinese traditional ideas of "plain" beauty and leads us to the thinking of "plain" beauty. With simple words Ji Xian-lin narrates the true history, expresses the charm of his own life and personality, edifies readers'mind, and cultivates people's spirit and personality. His prose attains the unity of value of "the truth, the good and the beautiful "as is said by Zong Bai-hua.