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A consideration of blandness not as the absence of defining
qualities but as the harmonious union of all potential values-an
infinite opening into human experience. Already translated into six
languages, Francois Jullien's In Praise of Blandness has become a
classic. Appearing for the first time in English, this
groundbreaking work of philosophy, anthropology, aesthetics, and
sinology is certain to stir readers to think and experience what
may at first seem impossible: the richness of a bland sound, a
bland meaning, a bland painting, a bland poem. In presenting the
value of blandness through as many concrete examples and original
texts as possible, Jullien allows the undifferentiated foundation
of all things-blandness itself-to appear. After completing this
book, readers will reevaluate those familiar Western lines of
thought where blandness is associated with a lack-the undesirable
absence of particular, defining qualities. Jullien traces the
elusive appearance and crucial value of blandness from its
beginnings in the Daoist and Confucian traditions to its
integration into literary and visual aesthetics in the
late-medieval period and beyond. Gradually developing into a
positive quality in Chinese aesthetic and ethical traditions, the
bland comprises the harmonious and unnameable union of all
potential values, embodying a reality whose very essence is change
and providing an infinite opening into the breadth of human
expression and taste. More than just a cultural history, In Praise
of Blandness invites those both familiar and unfamiliar with
Chinese culture to explore the resonances of the bland in literary,
philosophical, and religious texts and to witness how all currents
of Chinese thought-Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism-converge in
harmonious accord.
A consideration of blandness not as the absence of defining
qualities but as the harmonious union of all potential values-an
infinite opening into human experience. Already translated into six
languages, Francois Jullien's In Praise of Blandness has become a
classic. Appearing for the first time in English, this
groundbreaking work of philosophy, anthropology, aesthetics, and
sinology is certain to stir readers to think and experience what
may at first seem impossible: the richness of a bland sound, a
bland meaning, a bland painting, a bland poem. In presenting the
value of blandness through as many concrete examples and original
texts as possible, Jullien allows the undifferentiated foundation
of all things-blandness itself-to appear. After completing this
book, readers will reevaluate those familiar Western lines of
thought where blandness is associated with a lack-the undesirable
absence of particular, defining qualities. Jullien traces the
elusive appearance and crucial value of blandness from its
beginnings in the Daoist and Confucian traditions to its
integration into literary and visual aesthetics in the
late-medieval period and beyond. Gradually developing into a
positive quality in Chinese aesthetic and ethical traditions, the
bland comprises the harmonious and unnameable union of all
potential values, embodying a reality whose very essence is change
and providing an infinite opening into the breadth of human
expression and taste. More than just a cultural history, In Praise
of Blandness invites those both familiar and unfamiliar with
Chinese culture to explore the resonances of the bland in literary,
philosophical, and religious texts and to witness how all currents
of Chinese thought-Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism-converge in
harmonious accord.
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