Aesthetic Culture Under The Monetary Philosophy Perspective

Monetary economy promotes social differentiation and the awakening of theindividual. It penetrates into the aesthetic and cultural fields and has a far-reachingimpact on the modern aesthetic culture. Faced with this situation, Simmel’s study is notfrom the external macro level, but the departure from the philosophy of life, using themethod of contemplation of the metaphysical. Looking the currency as a form of socialconcentration to explore the value of the currency and the philosophical connotations, toreveal the impact of the currency on the social structure and the culture. This paper isbased on the book "Philosophy of Money", studying from three aspects of modernculture: urban culture, sociology and aesthetics.The interaction of currency leveled the differences of things. This feature penetratedinto all aspects of social culture. As a medium of exchange, its value is gradually beingdiluted, but transformed into a mere symbolic value; Currency created a complex socialinternal motion. In modern culture, currency led to two kinds of social and culturaltendencies: the averaging of the socio-cultural, quantitative and objective tendency andthe tendency of individual freedom and inner independence, Which in turn led to thecrisis of modern culture that the purpose of life is to submit to the means and theobjective of free culture on the main cultural.On the cultural aspects of the city, thecurrency under the control of city life, the individual who reflects a typical city state ofmind: intellect first, apathy and anxiety, meticulous accounting, reserved and exclusion.Simmel further explore the city people’s liberation pathway that is the pursuit of fashionand the rise of tourism and adventure. People express individuality through fashion andmake a distance of daily life through adventure. In the sociology of aesthetics, Simmelattaches great importance to art and aesthetics connotation of distance, and contact withmodern monetary economy and urban life. He thinks that modern art to seek its ownunique through keep distance with life. Facing the fierce cultural conflicts of the modernsociety, Simmel attempt to achieve self-redemption through aesthetic art. Simmelfocused on the definition of modern a modern aestheticism connotation, and aestheticperspective view of a modern society. At the same time, He looks the society as a work ofart.