Abstract: William James's grasp of the original practical activities underlies his aesthetic thought of pragmatism. He is well versed in describing and analyzing the aesthetic phenomena in the field where the subject and the object are not separated. On the one hand, he emphasizes the impromptu features of aesthetic behaviors driven by meaning-seeking, centering on the analysis of their fresh state, which is original, occasional while inevitable. On the other hand, he also creatively explores the horizontal features of the smooth and impromptu development of aesthetic life from the perspective of stream of consciousness or consciousness of time. He believes that only under this premise can the spatial composition of art works come to be integral. By ensuring the integrity of aesthetic life and the spatial composition of art works, James's philosophy of aesthetic temporality provides an excellent exemplar for "spatiotemporal grammar" that describes aesthetic life. This article provides a revisionist idea that develops and supplements James's philosophy, some of which still remain latent, unconscious, and fragmented.

Key words: William James, the philosophy of aesthetic temporality, stream of consciousness, temporal horizon, spatial composition, integrality