Page 132 - 2022(1) International Confusion Studies

Int. Confucian Stud. 2022; 1(1): 125–144

Jixi Yuan*
Being Mild and Gentle, Sincere and
Broadminded and Chinese Aesthetic

Psychology

https://doi.org/10.1515/icos-2022-2007

Abstract: Appearing for the first time in the chapter “Explanation of the Six Arts” of
The Book of Rites,the term “being mild and gentle, sincere and broadminded”
reflects Chinese aesthetic psychology. Based on the philosophy of the Mean and
harmony, the term fuses poetry with music and extends them to the aesthetics of
literature and art. It preserves the concept of harmony dating to the Zhou Dynasty
(1046 B.C.E.–256 B.C.E.). After being explained by Confucius and expounded by Dai
Sheng, the compiler of The Book of Rites,itinfluenced the studies of The Book of
SongsandmusictheoryoftheHanDynasty(206B.C.E.–220C.E.).Itlaidthefoundation
of the aesthetic psychology of the Chinese nation and still retains strong vitality.
Keywords: being mild and gentle, sincere and broadminded, aesthetic psychology,
thought of harmony, literary criticism

In Chinese thought and culture, “being mild and gentle, sincere and broad-
minded” (温柔敦厚) is an extremely important and controversial category. The
concept first appeared in the chapter Explanation of the Six Arts of The Book of
Rites (《礼记 · 经解》), a Confucian classic of the Han Dynasty (202 B.C.E.–220
B.C.E.): “If the people are mild and gentle, sincere and broadminded, this is
)
because they learn The Book of Songs (《诗经》…” (Ruan, 2009, p. 3493) The
context shows Han Confucians’ description of the six arts, namely, The Book of
)
Songs, The Book of History (《尚书》 The Book of Rites (《仪礼》 The Book
,
)
,
),
of Changes (《易经》 The Spring and Autumn Annals (《春秋》), and The Book of
)
.
Music (《乐经》 The idea is that by examining the cultural cultivation of a
nation’s people, one can deduce how well they have been taught the six arts. If
their people are mild and gentle, sincere and broadminded, this is because
Article note: This is an abridged version of the article which was first published in Chinese in Issue
1, Volume 1 of International Studies on Confucianism (《国际儒学》) in 2021. The English version
was translated by Xiaohua Tong and Yanan Shao.
*Corresponding author: Jixi Yuan, School of Chinese Classics, Renmin University of China, Beijing,
China; and Center for Aesthetics and Aesthetic Education, Peking University, Beijing, China,
E-mail: rucyjx@163.com

Open Access. © 2022 the author(s), published by De Gruyter. This work is licensed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.