Chinese Journal of Literary Criticism

No.3, 2023

 

The Mutual Interpretation Research of China’s “Wei” and Western “Taste”

(Abstract)

 

Dai Wenjing

 

“Wei” is an important metacategory in ancient Chinese aesthetics and literature theory. In his The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons, Liu Xie introduced wei into literary criticism, greatly promoting the maturity and general application of this category in the theoretical criticism of ancient literature. We find that, compared with “flavor” and “savor,” in terms of inclusiveness and continuity, the meaning of “taste” is relatively close to “wei,” as well as in the similar evolution process of overall semantics. Although slight differences lie between, they both have undergone the transformation from physiological sensory concept to aesthetic category. Therefore, they are interconnected and mutual interpretation in certain degree.