Chapter 2 2. Metaphysics of Art

Nietzsche often talked about "aesthetic metaphysics", "artistic metaphysics", "artist's metaphysics", "art in deep and wide metaphysical sense", endowing art with metaphysical meaning.The metaphysics of art can be expressed in two interrelated propositions: "Only as an aesthetic phenomenon, life and the world appear to be justified." "Art is the highest mission of life and the original metaphysical activity of life." Metaphysics of Art Based on the fact that life and the world lack metaphysical meaning.Schopenhauer believes that the world is a blind will, life is a phenomenon of this will, and both are meaningless.He came to the pessimistic conclusion of negating the world and life.Nietzsche admitted that the world and life are meaningless, but he was not willing to be pessimistic and pessimistic. In order to affirm the world and life, he resorted to art.

The metaphysics of art consists of the Apollonian spirit and the Dionysian spirit.Apollo and Dionysus appeared on Nietzsche's aesthetic stage as the two saviors of life. The Apollonian spirit teaches people to stay on the outside and not to pursue the truth of the world and life.This involves an important thought of Nietzsche, that is, the opposition between art and truth.Plato has already put forward the idea that art and truth are opposed, but the standpoint is opposite to that of Nietzsche.He believes that the ideal world is the real world, the truth; the real world is just its shadow and imitation; art is the shadow of the shadow, the imitation of imitation.So, he uses truth against art.Nietzsche denied the existence of a world of ideas. He believed that there is only one world, the actual world in which we live, which is eternally becoming.This world is cruel and meaningless to people, so pessimism is the truth.However, truth is not the highest standard of value, and art is more valuable than truth.In order to survive, we need to cover up certain terrible truths with the "lie" of art. "Truth is ugly. We have art, relying on it we will not destroy the truth." This is the "metaphysical beautification purpose" of art.It can be seen that, from the perspective of the Apollonian spirit, the metaphysical significance of art lies in its value to life.Art metaphysics is essentially a kind of value metaphysics.

However, this is only one aspect of the metaphysics of art.Metaphysics is to trace the origin and question the noumenon; it is contrary to the original meaning of metaphysics to only stay on the appearance.Therefore, one of the more important aspects of art metaphysics is Dionysian spirit.