A Research On Jacques Maquet’s Aesthetic Antropology

Aesthetic anthropology no mater as a discipline, a research method, or a basic perspective, its advent play a positive role in the development of aesthetics in recent years. Aesthetic anthropology use the methods of anthropology to study the aesthetic phenomenon and art,and use the holistic approach,fieldwork and cultural comparative studies to cut into the problem through multi-level and multi-angle analysis. It transcended the metaphysical paradigm of the traditional aesthetic research to some extent. However, if we want to have a systematic understanding about aesthetic anthropology,we must date back to Jacques Maquet.In the "Introduction of aesthetic anthropology", published in 1979, Jacques Maquet put forward very explicitly the concept of "aesthetic anthropology" for the first time. In this book, he defined preliminary the study subjects, research methods and research field of aesthetic anthropology. He advocated that used the anthropological research methods and techniques to study the aesthetic phenomenon and aesthetic art. He thought that the research of aesthetic anthropology should be a kind of experiential study,rather than the paradigm of philosophical thought. He advocated that use the methods of cultural overall concept and cultural materialism to study the relations between aesthetic phenomenon and art and reality. He researched the aesthetic experience from the angle of superhuman beings and establishes the central position of beauty meditation and non instrumental form in the study of aesthetic anthropology. According to the cultural overall concept and cultural materialism,he determined the importance that the production technology, social network and the concept structure as the three basic elements of cultural analysis of aesthetic anthropology. He introduced successfully aesthetic research into the field of anthropology and made the important contribution in the respect of integration and mutual learning of them.Presently, Chinese scholars lack of attention to the Jacques Maquet, so, in part of the introduction,I introduce briefly Jacques Maquet’s life and his academic background. At the same time,I combing briefly the research actuality about the aesthetic anthropology. In addition to the part of introduction and conclusion, the main body of the thesis consists of three parts. The first part is theoretical basis and the logical starting of the aesthetic anthropology what Jacques Maquet constructs. This part has a preliminary opinion about the research principles, research methods and research areas of aesthetic anthropology what Maquet put forward.The second part,I combing the Jacques Mquet’s aesthetic anthropology ideology. Maquet started from the experience and form to research it, and put forward furtherly the conception of aesthetic contemplation experience and the noninstrumental forms. And they are identified as two standard of aesthetic anthropology research. By researching the aesthetic contemplation experience and the noninstrumental forms, we can get an objective, Cross-cultural and universal human aesthetic experience study.The third part is the analysis of aesthetic anthropology. This part is the focus and stance of the whole thought of Maquet. Maquet constructed his thought on the cultural view, and he believed if we want to solve the problem of art and reality, the influence of culture can not be ignored. He gives the development of aesthetic phenomenon and art a profound interpretation in the cultural system from the angle of the holistic vision.The book of "Introduction" provides guidelines and methods for the construction of aesthetic anthropology’s discipline. At the same time,it applies the anthropological method to the specific interpretation of the aesthetic phenomena and art research. So,the fourth part of this paper mainly expound the theory value and realistic significance of aesthetic anthropology. This part,I make a summary and thinking to aesthetic anthropology,and hop that Maquet’s aesthetic anthropology thought can be introduced into china so that we can broaden the research view of aesthetic anthropology.