Li Zhi - The Beauty of Music, from Nature

Li Zhi (23 November 1527 - 7 May 1602) was a Ming Dynasty historian and litterateur, who lived through the three dynasties of Emperor Shizong, Emperor Mu Zong, and Emperor Shen Zong of the Ming Dynasty. In an authoritarian society where imperial examinations were prevalent, Li Zhi, as an innovator, opposed traditional Confucianism, male superiority and female inferiority, corruption of corrupt officials, and pursued the liberation of thought and individuality. This paper takes the dynasty under the rule of the three emperors Zhu Houjian, Zhu Zaijian and Zhu Yijun as its historical background, it explores the reasons for the formation of Li Zhi's musical aesthetics, its content and influence.