Chinese Journal of Literary Criticism

No.4, 2018 

On Wang Fuzhi’s Poetics of Shenli (Philosophy and Spirit)and Criticism Practice

(Abstract)

Hou Wenyi

Wang Fuzhi not only was a famous thinker and philosopher in the Qing Dynasty, but also developed his own style of poetics and criticism. He exhibits an integration of theory, creation and criticism. Examining the theory of shenli (philosophy and spirit), this paper discusses this integration. Wang discussed shenli as an important poetic aesthetic concept in his work Jiangzhai Shihua (On Poetry From Jiangzhai), putting forward the views of “examination based on philosophy and spirit” and “the natural coincidence of philosophy and spirit.” He also applied these ideas in Gushi Pingxuan (Selections of Ancient Poems), Tangshi Pingxuan (Selections of Tang Poems) and Mingshi Pingxuan (Selections of Ming Poems), which can be regarded as an example of combining theory with criticism.