Abstract
The term “changeable states” refers to anomalous states arising from transformation. The Song-dynasty poets cultivated a distinctive aesthetic and literary interest in natural objects, their processes of change, and their philosophical implications. Building on the experience of pre-Song literati, they integrated Confucian, Buddhist, and Taoist approaches to observing nature with the method of perceiving things through change and “exploring principles in living beings.” In doing so, they reconstructed logic and generated meaning by explaining the “changeable states” of nature as the normal manifestation of heavenly principle. Through diverse perspectives and creative strategies, the Song poets broke through classical paradigms and conventional boundaries of traditional nature aesthetics. They internalized the creative agency of nature and the infinity of “changeable states” into their own inexhaustible artistic spirit and creativity, establishing a dynamic relationship in which object and self, human culture and nature, become mutually subjective and enter into equal dialogue. They also explored viable ways to realize the oneness of Heaven and humanity in the realm of art and literature. This rational, tolerant, congenial, and open nature aesthetics of “changeable states” and its poetic practice reflect the inner trajectory of the transformation from Tang to Song poetics, opening a new landscape of nature writing marked by the “Song-dynasty tone.”
Keywords
Song-dynasty poetry, “changeable states”, nature aesthetics
First Page
96
Last Page
105
Recommended Citation
Wang, Xiaoyi. 2026. "The Nature Aesthetics of “Changeable States” and Its Poetic Practice among the Song-dynasty Poets." Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art 46, (2): pp.96-105. https://tsla.researchcommons.org/journal/vol46/iss2/9
