Confucius - Chinese ancient thinking of functions of art

Confucius (c. 551–479 BCE) was a Chinese philosopher, poet and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who was traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages.

What is the intrinsic value of art? Confucius considered poems to have four main functions. Poem is an ancient art form. The ancient Chinese poems were not only for reciting. They can be sung as well, beyond literature, a kind of musical art as well. The first function, enjoyment, is for readers to observe beauty and enjoyment. The second function, reflection, reflects the social or moral problems in society. The third function, empowerment, music as activities gathers people around as emotional exchange. The fourth function, criticizing the social problems. In short, art can educate one and even change society.

It demonstrates that the ancient Chinese considered that art is very functional. For music, the concept of lǐyuè (禮樂) reflects courtesy and music are closely related.  Courtesy is more than just politeness and etiquette. It refers an individual to becoming a better person and maintaining social stability through music. The lǐyuè culture originated from the Zhou Dynasty (c.1046～771 BCE) which established a strong society. However, in the age of Confucius, the Zhou had fallen, frequent wars between different powers. In the chaotic period, no one really cared about the lǐyuè, but Confucius believed in it can change the world. That is the reason he stressed the importance of lǐyuè and hoped the society return to peace and order.

The critics of lǐyuè in the modern standard may attack its segregation of different classes, the king can enjoy the best and largest scale of music, normal people cannot enjoy the music like the king does. But, in a good society, everyone should receive lǐyuè education.

《論語·陽貨》

興，指詩歌具體安排的藝術形象，可以激發人的精神之興奮，可以使人從詩歌鑑賞中獲得一種美的享受；觀，是指詩歌真實地反映社會政治和道德風尚狀況，因而能讓人從中觀察出政治的得失和風俗的盛衰；羣，則是認為詩歌可以有使人互相交流情感、加強團結的作用；怨，“怨刺上政”，是指文學作品有干預現實、批評社會的作用。

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