ASLE Members Participate in Forum on Chinese Leisure Philosophy and Soma-esthetics

The 4thForum on Chinese Leisure Philosophy and Soma-esthetics Opened in Jiangxi Province

The 4th Forum on Leisure Philosophy and Soma-esthetics was held In Bailudong (White Deer Cave) Academy in Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province on July 23-25, 2018. This conference was co-sponsored by Asian-Pacific Leisure Education Research Center of Zhejiang University, Soma-esthetics Research Institute of Shenzhen University, School of Literature and Media of Jiujiang College and Central-China Leisure Culture Research Center of Hubei Polytechnic College. Over 40 Participants attended the conference, among whom are prominent Chinese scholars in the fields of Leisure Studies, Soma-esthetics and Ecocriticism, including Professor Yao Wenfang, Professor Pan Liyong, Professor Wang Xiaohua, Professor Yi-min Huang, Professor Song Lili and Professor Liu Bei.

Two rapidly developing academic fields, Leisure Philosophy and Soma-esthetics have attracted great attention in Chinese academic circles.  Deeper exploration of each has revealed the connections between the two. Leisure Philosophy emphasizes the physical body in the context of issues of modernity as well as postmodernity, and in doing so it critically and significantly informs Soma-esthetics. In order to reveal the interdisciplinariness of the research, the organizers decided to open this forum, which received positive response from many scholars with relevant academic interests. During two days of intense discussions and spontaneous dialogues, scholars from Zhejiang University, Shenzhen University,Tsinghua University, Shandong Normal University, Tamkang University and other universities represented their ideas on the construction of leisure philosophy in the perspectives of soma-esthetics, involving diverse fields including eco-aesthetics, studies of everyday life, life aesthetics, and traditional aesthetics. The interdisciplinary discussions also reflected the striking features of contemporary Chinese aesthetics.