The Aesthetic Meanings of Scholar's Gardens in the Northern Song Dynasty
In the Northern Song Dynasty,most scholars were comprehensive talents with multiple i-dentities such as literati,scholars,and politicians.As officials,most of them cherished the ideal of help-ing the world and shared the sentiment of worrying before others and enjoying pleasures later.However,when such ideals were implemented in reality,they often got trapped in officialdom struggles.Therefore,they aspired to build a private space outside the officialdom to resolve the contradiction between entering and leaving officialdom and obtain peace and freedom of body and mind.The functions of literati and scholars were fully exerted,and the prosperity of literature and art in the Northern Song Dynasty was closely related to this.Gardens were one of them.Firstly,gardens could be regarded as personal nature outside the officialdom,where scholars could gain the joy of freedom.Secondly,gardens were construc-ted in a freehand manner,and the tastes of literati were reflected everywhere.Thirdly,through the con-struction and appreciation of gardens,scholars achieved identity recognition.Aesthetically speaking,gar-dens played multiple roles in the lives of scholars.Cultural activities such as poetry and prose creation,and appreciation of calligraphy and painting not only demonstrated the cultural literacy and aesthetic tastes of scholars but also became an important part of their social interactions.More importantly,gar-dens were the tools for scholars to construct their identity and social status.By creating and experiencing these private spaces,scholars shaped and disseminated an elite culture and led the aesthetic trends at a broader social level.
Northern Song DynastyScholar's Gardenaesthetic tasteidentity recognition
万方数据
维普
