Appreciation of Human Beauty

during the Wei-Jin Period

 掷果盈车
Throwing fruits in Pan An’s chariot
 Contents

1 Appreciation of Outer Beauty 2 Appreciation of Inner Beauty In the

In the Wei-Jin Period Wei-Jin Period

3 Reasons for the Changing 4 Comparison of Appreciation of

Perception of Beauty human beauty in the Wei-Jin Period
and the Renaissance
A New Account of Tales of the World

the later Han (150-220 AD) and Wei-Jin

period (220-420 AD)

36 categories：state affairs, philosophical

and poetic gatherings, public relationships,
domestic matters…
Appearance and Manner (chapter 14)
 PART
01

Outer Beauty
A Fair Complexion
何平叔美姿仪，面至白。魏明帝疑其傅粉，正夏月，与热汤饼。 既啖，大汗出，
以朱衣自拭，色转皎然。

Emperor：powder? whiter than ever

extremely white sweat heavily

Bright Eyes

谢公云：“见林公双眼，黯黯明黑。”孙兴公
见林公：“棱棱露其爽。”

“When I look at Zhi Dun’s two eyes, they are

intensely dark, and gleaming black.”

“When I look at his stern angularity, it reveals

his forthrightness.”
Height: 180cm+

嵇康身长七尺八寸，风姿特秀。

Ji Kang was 184 cm tall, and had outstanding

manner and appearance.
Are these the sole criteria?
 PART
02

Appreciation of Inner Beauty In

the Wei-Jin Period
Naturalness: the man in the eastern bed
“东床快婿”
The Grand Preceptor’s sent a representative to “just go to see them in person and
ask the Chancellor to recommend one of his choose the one you like!”
sons or nephews to marry the Preceptor’s
daughter.
Naturalness: the man in the eastern bed
“东床快婿”
“Great! He is just the one I’m
“lying sprawled out in looking for!
the eastern bed with
bare chest”

“东床”
son-in-law

“all of them are good, but one young

man in particular…”
Unconventionality: the man beyond propriety
“方外之人，不崇礼制”
阮步兵丧母，裴令公往吊之。
阮方醉，散发坐床，箕踞不哭。
裴至，下席于地，哭吊喭毕，便去。

Ruan Ji’s mother died, and one of his friends,

Pei went to mourn her death.
Ruan was drunk at the time, sit with
disheveled hair and sprawled apart, with no
tears.
When Pei arrived, he put down a mat for
himself on the floor, shed tears and
Ruan Ji: One of the Seven Sages of the
expressed condolence. After that, he left.
Bamboo Grove, a group of well-recognized
Chinese freethinkers in the Wei-Jin Period.
Unconventionality: the man beyond propriety
“凡吊，主人哭，客乃为礼。阮既不哭，君何为哭？”
“Usually when one offers condolences, the host weeps and the guest
simply pays his respects. Since Ruan Ji himself was not in tears, why did
you weep?”

“阮方外之人，故不崇礼制；我辈俗中人，故以仪轨自居。”
“Ruan is a man living beyond the restrictions of conventional morality,
therefore he doesn’t have to obey the rules of propriety. Whereas people
like you and me are still bound by social etiquettes, so I have to do what
is required by the conventions.”

时人叹为两得其中。
His remarks were well received at that time.
Summary: outer and inner beauty in the Wei-Jin Period

Physique & Mind

Good looks & Liberal qualities

Inclusive Human
• Lively Individual
• Impressive Character
 PART 3

Reasons for the Changing Perception of Beauty

Political Turbulence and Social Chaos

• People realized the fragility of life and • Scholars got isolated from the dark
reconsider the life purpose. social reality and pursued an ideal and
• They challenge and the existing social norms peaceful life for themselves
and the once dominant thought of Confucianism.
The Rise of Metaphysics (玄学)
• Confucianism, Taoism and the influence of
Buddhism contributed to the rise of
metaphysics.

• Metaphysics focuses on concepts of being,

or existence, and the fundamental nature
of reality.

• People cared less about the external

environment but more about the inner self
and spirit.
 PART
04

Comparison of Appreciation of human

beauty in the Wei-Jin Period and the
Renaissance
The Renaissance: historical background

1 Social and economic changes

The feudal system

The rise of the market

economy

Individual freedom and

more self-expressions
The Renaissance: historical background

2 The growing secularism of society

The Black Death:

people started to loose
faith in the Church
The idea of
humanism thrived
The rise of trade:
people started to view
the Church as too
stuffy, impractical, and
rigid
An ideal of human beauty：
a perfect human type with
its proportions, oval face,
triangular forehead, straight
nose, muscular structure,
and balance
Medieval standards of beauty:
1. Regarding beauty of God
as the cause of all beauty
2. Connecting beauty with
divine light
3. The Virgin Mary and
Jesus look pretty stern
without any human
emotions or facial
expressions.
The beauty, worth, and
feelings of the individual
were elevated to
preeminence while the
importance of God was
diminished.
The Appreciation of human beauty in the Wei-Jin Period and
the Renaissance

Perfect Inner beauty

appearances Individual worth
& &
fine figures freedom
Consumer
Little Fresh Meat
Culture
Little Fresh Meat During the
Wei-Jin Period

only for outer beauty appreciation of both inner &outer beauty

THANK YOU