On the Motives,Purports and Theoretical Echoes of Marx's Excerpts on Vischer's Aesthetics

Abstract: Marx's Excerpts from Vischer's Aesthetics (1857) is a crucial document for studying his aesthetic thoughts,and academic discussions on it have mostly followed the viewpoints of Lifschitz and Lukács,but behind their similar views there is a tension between their standpoints.By referring to the original text of Theodor Vischer's Ästhetik oder Wissenschaft des Schønen and re-examining the positions of these two scholars,it can be concluded that the external motivations behind Marx's excerpts included preparing to write the “Aesthetics” entry for The New American Cyclopedia and drawing on the publication format of Vischer's work.Internally,Marx's theoretical focus centered on the original contents and subjective elements in Vischer's aesthetics,while he largely discarded content related to the Hegelian school.This set of excerpts left multiple theoretical echoes in Marx's aesthetic reflections,such as his discussions on Greek mythology and the beauty of inorganic nature,as well as his thoughts on artistic production and aesthetic education.Nevertheless,Marx transcended Vischer's idealist aesthetics through his materialist methodology.