A Study On Cai Xiang's Confucian Thoughts And Calligraphy

Calligraphy is China's unique art form.There is an undercurrent of influence of various cultural ideology in calligraphy,among which Confucianism has a profound and extensive influence on it.The influence Confucian thoughts exert is first and foremost on the calligrapher.For the calligrapher Cai Xiang,Confucian thoughts helps shape his works in the present Confucianism-permeated political,educational,environmental and social content.This paper is mainly aimed at studying a bilateral relation,that is the nurturing of Confucianism,a philosophical school of thoughts,in the thinking mode of creating calligraphy and the confirmation and even promotion of calligraphy on Confucianism vice versa,from an important perspective of both Confucianism and calligraphy,“He” or “harmony”,as a linking point.This part generally includes: the harmony in Cai Xiang's chirography;the harmony in the calligraphy style;the harmony in the mobility and staticity and the pursuit of a higher harmony followingly sublimated.Besides,this paper also deals with posterity's critique of Cai Xiang's calligraphy.Based on the division of three eras of the Song Dynasty,Yuan and Ming dynasties,and the Qing Dynasty,this section examines the contemporary concerns,research,and evaluation of Cai's calligraphy within the relevant time frame.It sums up that although the opinions of the critics of different eras tend to be consistent or inconsistent from time to time,with sporadic criticism,they generally show an overwhelmingly one-sided and affirmative attitude towards Cai Xiang's calligraphy.Moreover,by making a comparison between Cai Xiang's calligraphic ideology and the works criticizing Cai Xiang's calligraphy,the paper also examines the truth and deviation of the images in Cai Xiang's calligraphy under the construction of the critique discourse.It is further learned that the “truth” under the construction of the critique discourse may not be the truth itself.In the exposition,the paper explores the realistic and lively Cai Xiang's calligraphic images by associating with the background of the early Song Dynasty and by the method of combining history and literary works.