The Integration of Literature and Aesthetic Education: The Enlightening Effect of Wencheng on University Students’Aesthetic Competence

Aesthetic education is a crucial aspect of talent development, and sought to not only expand students’ aesthetic literacy, but also help them grow emotionally, morally, and spiritually, within the university setting. This paper uses textual analysis to explore the aesthetic possibilities available in Yu Hua’s novel Wencheng by considering narrative structure, character construction, language style, and emotional imagery. Based upon Schwartz’s (1992) Theory of Basic Human Values, the purpose of aesthetic perception is articulated as value sensitivity, and based upon Kohlberg’s (1984) theory of moral development, the paper suggests moral judgment develops through aesthetic judgment and ethical reasoning. This paper asserts that Wencheng is a novel primarily concerned with tragic beauty, alongside a more taciturn resilience, allowing university students to engage in serious aesthetic experience and ethical reflection that expands the overall aims of aesthetic education.