Recently, “immersion”, a technical term in virtual reality, has gained attention in narratological studies and has been applied to the construction of multimedia theories. While the emphases and interpretations of different immersion theories are diverse, they share the focus on readers' and/or users' narrative experience and cognitive process, in order to break away from classical narratology and herald the digital turn. Among all these theories, Janet H. Murray, Marie-Laure Ryan and Michael Heim exemplify three approaches to exploring immersive experience in the digital world. Among them, Murray investigates immersion in “low-tech” narrative, Ryan constructs a general poetics of immersion beyond media, and Heim explores “ultimate display” from the unique sensory experience of “high-tech” narrative. Immersion is pivotal to the understanding of narrative cognition in the digital age. Clarifying different approaches is the premise of understanding the technological intervention and aesthetical change in contemporary narratological theories.

Since the 1970s, Darko Suvin's “cognitive estrangement” has been widely considered the starting point of science fiction (sf) studies. It argues that the “estranged” narratives of sf need to be validated by empirical, positivist “cognition”, thereby justifying the novum and the sense of newness in sf stories. This article, however, denies the “neutral” status of cognition, as it can only produce the politicised knowledge endorsed by a certain authority. Through a close interrogation of an emerging literary genre termed “the New Weird” — one that combines both science fictional and fantastic characteristics and thus questions the ideological bias of cognition — I will draw upon Quentin Meillassoux's speculative materialism and Gilles Deleuze's conceptualisation of becoming and nomad, proposing a post-humanist epistemology that opens itself to contingency and may transcend any territory constrained by binary logics.

After finishing Black Square, the foundation for pure abstract art, Kazimir Malevich sought to further consolidate and develop the connotation of suprematism, using the “zero of form” as a core principle to deepen his metaphysical thinking about color. In his theoretical writings and artistic practice from 1915 to 1920, Malevich developed the concept of artistic evolution, namely “three stages of suprematism” (black–red–white), endowing each stage with a corresponding motivation (economy–revolution–pure action). Malevich saw White on White, which contained universal utopian ideas, as the final stage of Hegel's evolutionary view of history, in which the concepts were integrated into a purely unified form and became self-contained, corresponding to what Malevich referred to as the “unified world architectural system on Earth” or the “post-historical” era of art. Combining Arthur Danto's declaration of the “end of art”, painting has come to an end in the narrative level in White on White, where both form and color are “transformed into zero,” and the interpretation of artistic concepts turn into the interpretation of philosophical concepts. However, abstract art has entered a diversified era in the theoretical atmosphere of the “art world,” and the “emptiness” of abstract art has the potential to continue to nurture or generate new connotations and ideas. The “end of art” in the context of suprematism emphasizes the “liberation” of art in the dual sense of aesthetic and social values, which is closely related to the aesthetics of the Russian Silver Age.

Embarking on the paradox of the imagination, Schelling elaborates on its creative and intuitive nature. He regards the intellectual intuition of the Absolute as the transcendental foundation of imagination, thus elevating the latter from the level of epistemology to that of ontology, and making it a kind of creativity rooted in the divine Creation that establishes the fundamental relationship between human and the being of the world. The poetic imagination is the objectification of the divine imagination in the empirical world. It communicates the finite and the infinite through the aesthetic action of “Ein-bildung,” and achieves the realization of the Absolute's self-production and self-intuition. The integration of imagination and the metaphysical construction principle of the whole philosophical system is essentially a poetic creation. The inherent structure of imagination contains a contradiction between freedom and necessity. Schelling believes that the real imagination should be free creation constrained by systematic inner necessity. He reveals the real human imagination as the combination of divinity and poetry based on human freedom. The three-dimensional theoretical structure of imagination—divinity, poetry and freedom—runs through the three human spiritual fields, reason, sensibility and will, which correspond to the triple meta-value of truth, beauty and goodness, prompting people to achieve an overall harmonious state of life.

 The concept of “Uber-Marionette,” proposed by the British theatre practitioner Gordon Craig, is a metaphor for an ideal performer whose body has a purely “corporeal/material” quality. In contrast, the body of Cyber “Uber-Marionette,” represented by virtual idols in digital time-space, is a kind of disembodied information body. The evolution of the body landscape from “Uber-Marionette” to Cyber “Uber-Marionette” marks a transition from substantialist views on the body, inherited and developed by Gordon Craig, to cybernetic views on the body in the age of “posthumanism”. This transformation has not only brought about a profound change in the paradigm of existence of the performer's body but has also virtualized the body of the audience and shaken the performer-spectator relationship. In order to respond to the challenges posed by the Cyber “Uber-Marionette” as a kind of disembodied “hyperhuman,” the human performer, rather than retrogressing into the state of “prehuman” implied by the image of “Uber-Marionette”, must evolve into a kind of embodied “posthuman” whose strengthened body coexists with technology.

The aesthetics of existence is at the core of Foucault's later ethical genealogy, in which the superiority of the free subject in the self-construction over power can establish the superiority of the ethical subject over the moral subject and that of the governance of the self over the governance of others. Agamben's concept of the “form-of-life” in Part IV of the Homo Sacer is developed from his reflections upon Foucault, which suggests that Foucault's aesthetics of existence does not attain what he expects because of its association with tekhne or power. Therefore, Agamben critically inherits Foucault's thought from an ontological perspective and develops his existential aesthetics of the self of eros.

Mikhail Bakhtin sensitively pointed out the demand for an exact place and time in eighteenth-century European sentimental novels. This article argues that the emphasis on specific time and place is only one aspect of the artistic pursuit of sentimental novels. In terms of time, sentimental novels abandon objective time that is linear, uniform and measurable and instead extend some moments in accordance with the inner feelings of characters. In terms of space, authors of such novels prefer pastoral and lake areas with picturesque scenes and sentimental feelings. The time and space in sentimental novels do not, as Bakhtin said, intend to deliberately create a sense of reality as demanded by early naive realism, but are often a precursor to romanticism that integrates emotions and imaginations. The fragmented and ruined spatial form of sentimental novels deeply reflects the rise of emotional culture in the mid- and late-eighteenth century. The idea of time and space in sentimental novels not only reveals the critique of modernity in the romantic movement but also implies the exploration of the inner space and time of modernist fictions. Their fragmented narrative is also a valuable attempt to explore the relationship between readers and works.

The construction of the history of Qing poetry cannot be separated from an emphasis on typical events. The most notable event, namely Cao Yin's construction of the Lian (“Chinaberry”) Pavilion and his inscriptions of pictures and texts, was accompanied by the spatial construction of multiple ethical, literary and aesthetic implications of the Lian Pavilion as a “house”. Cao Yin regarded the pavilion space as his sanctuary and attempted to construct his memory of the life in Jinling, the southern capital, and his living situation  after moving there. On the one hand, he used the image of filial piety to describe his living space and condition, and added the image of meeting friends and secluded life in order to create his self-image. On the other hand, when constructing his social identity and living pattern, Cao Yin spread the elegant lifestyle by collecting poems about the pavilion and reciting them at banquets, thus completing the process of artistic writing. This literary event was part of the wave of poetry exchange in the early Qing dynasty, and it also led to a resurgence of the tradition of scholar gathering. The open metaphorical implication space of the pavilion called upon jiangnan scholars to participate in the construction of the historical memory of Jinling.

Xin Qiji embodied the unique duality of his identity as a literati and a scholar official,” allowing it to express both his pursuit of political values in the social realm and his personal experience in realistic situations. This distinctive style combines elements of restraint and unhibited expressioncoexist, showcasing the diversity of Xin Qiji's literati identity. His ci-poetry holds significant textual importance in the history of literati ci-poetry. By upholding the tradition of “writing ci-poetry according to sound” while expanding the artistic capacity and lyrical function of ci-poetry, Xin Qiji surpassed the stylistic boundaries between poetry and ci-poetry. Through the skillful utilization of traditional artistic techniques, he established the literary status of ci-poetry as a language based art form. Additionally, Xin Qiji effectively reconciled the musical and literary aspects of ci-poetry, resolving the challenge of using the conventional ci-poetry form to express the novel content of “ambition.” This accomplishment greatly influences the development of literati ci poetry. Xin Qiji's ci-poetry not only serves as a literary representation of the historical, social and cultural dynamics between the Northern Song Dynasty and the Southern Song Dynasty but also enriches the possibilities for the pluralistic characteristics of the literary essence of ci-poetry.

In the 1940s, Hu Feng proposed a theory of “subjective fighting spirit” for the writing of realistic fiction. This article suggests that this theory implies a political agenda, which should be understood in the cultural politics of China in the 1940s. The divergence of his views towards contemporary Chinese society and its culture from that of the CCP accounts for his disagreement with Mao's vision of a new culture. It is a competition for cultural hegemony with the Party in the field of cultural production.

Robert T. Tally Jr.'s theory of literary cartography， a development based on Frederic Jameson's notion of cognitive mapping， differentiates itself from the concept of literary maps which focuses on the distinction between text and map. Tally's literary cartography not only engages the fundamental connection between human existence， topophrenia， and literary cartography， but also reveals the inherent characteristics of literary cartography such as spatiality， metaphorization and ideological productivity. As an approach to understanding the modern world through the lens of text as map， literary cartography not only introduces new perspectives and methodology to literary studies and geocriticism， but also turns to the study of human existence. Conceived as a way to create authentic space and overcome spatial anxiety and representational crisis， literary cartography has switched from merely drawing literary maps to creating maps of people's lives. Tally's literary cartography projects a map of human existence through literary mapping， for the sake of humans' well-being.

Georges Didi-Huberman's image theory maintains strong sensitivity to current social politics. Since his exhibition “Uprising”, Didi-Huberman has been making visual anthropological analysis of people's gestures of rebellion and considering images as an endowment of human desire. Pathos and imagination are two key perspectives through which Didi-Huberman's image theory enters politics, but Jacques Rancière questions his interpretation of the pathos dimension of images. In turn, Didi-Huberman clarifies Rancière's misunderstanding by tracing the philosophical origins of the concept while emphasizing its traumatic nature of passivity. In addition, he rethinks Rancière's key concept of the politics of aesthetics, “the distribution of sensible,” from the perspective of the fusion of imagination and politics, pointing out that the fusion of imagination and politics is key to the evocation of pathos. Through the viewing and political reflection of images, he obtains the “eye of history” to confirm the readability of history.

In traditional Chinese landscape painting, the “pavilion” serves a unique role as a spatial indicator and narrative element. The “grass pavilion” and the “empty pavilion”, both integral components of the classical pavilion imagery, encapsulate the aesthetic philosophies and perspectives of ancient scholars. These classic depictions of the pavilion not only convey the humanistic ideals of the scholars but also imbue traditional landscape painting with profound meaning. As a symbol of human presence and geographical location, the pavilion guides the viewers in their spatial imaginings and entrances them into a metaphorical realm cherished by scholars. It creates an excellent vantage point and viewing experience, offering painters and viewers alike the best platform for contemplation and visual anticipation. Simultaneously, the “pavilion” also unveils itself while capturing the essence of the world. In doing so, it transforms into a “holy land” within the mountains, shedding light on the solitary disposition of nature cherished by scholars. As a symbolic spatial element, the empty pavilion fortifies the echoes of the past and the illusion of memory. Gazing upon the pavilion hints at the cultural identity of the viewer, collectively contributing to the rich tapestry of meaning within landscape painting.

Since the 1980s， the question of fictionality has been a major focus of Western scholarship. A variety of theoretical and methodological approaches have emerged， among which the most representative are the works of Thomas Pavel， Kendall Walton，  Genette， Marie-Laure Ryan， Lubomír Dolezel， Dorrit Cohn， and Jean-Marie Schaeffer. Studies of fictionality can be divided into three categories： studies of the internal such as ontological and formalist methods， studies of the external such as those adopting the perspectives of pragmatics and cognitive science， and research that combines these two approaches. These studies have shaped the primary orientations and tendencies in the study of fictionality in the West， namely， the transmedia perspective， the synthetic approach that integrates the internal and external methods， and intercultural and historical perspectives that aim to capture the cultural diversity and historicity of the concept. In general， contemporary Western research on fictionality seeks to better understand the varied relationships between cultures of fiction and their corresponding societies， and to reinforce fiction's role in an anthropological sense.

In the history of Western aesthetics, Cicero made a groundbreaking differentiation between two categories of beauty, namely, dignitas and venustas. Starting with a critical examination of this set of concepts, this article argues that Cicero utilized the conceptual and linguistic resources from the second century BCE onwards to develop his aesthetic theory. He defended the masculine dignitas while making venustas — previously used to denote feminine or erotic beauty—an indispensable charm for elite men. The inherent gender and class conflicts within the two types of beauty demonstrated the dilemma facing the ideal orators in Cicero's mind amidst the social crises of late Republican Rome. Since Cicero's time, the meaning of venustas had gone through a semantic shift. It became a common term describing aristocratic men as well as works of art. In Cicero's writings, dignitas and venustas had not yet become independent aesthetic concepts; instead, they were subordinate to the writer's ethical and political concerns.

The Yale School finds that, following the transforming and generating mechanism of the three dimensions of language (the signified dimension, the intersubjective dimension, and the self-reflective and self-concern dimension), literary speech creates numerous signification methods or rhetorical strategies to defuse the primal paradox of speech. These methods or strategies include singularity or distortion, paradoxical expression, and spatialization; repetition, concealment or silence, symbol-giving; the metaphor of metaphor, and thematizing the unspeakable; suspension, generativity, testimony, and self-endowments. They not only reveal the mystery of the unspeakable between the tension of the speakable and the unspeakable, but also lead speech to the primal origin of thought and the world, offering a literary verdict to the primal origin or the ultimate aporia of metaphysics.

The canonization of A New Account of the Tales of the World (Shishuo Xinyu) is attributed to its publication and circulation by literati in the Southern Song dynasty. Existing studies have generally been focused on three editions of this book, namely the block-printed editions by Dong Fen, Lu You, Zhang Yan, whereas little attention has been paid to the fourth edition noted in the preface of Zhang Yan's edition. At the beginning of its appearance, the dissemination of A New Account of the Tales of the World was apparently marked by regional characteristics. It was printed in Jiangnan, Sichuan and Tanzhou, followed by the emergence of scholars who studied, annotated and disseminated as well as made exchanges about the book. Lu You, among others, was both a printer and a disseminator, traveling from Hunan to Sichuan and Jiangnan to make connections between scholars of different regions. During the book form's transition from codex to printing, the active participation of noted literary figures and the literati groups clearly registered how widely A New Account of the Tales of the World was circulated in the Southern Song dynasty. Such a phenomenon is of great academic significance in the history of the development of literary classics. 

Calling melody as pai first appeared in the middle of the Ming dynasty, which is a fascinating phenomenon in Chinas cultural history. Paiming was a term particularly used by scholars in the Ming and Qing dynasties, whose original meaning represented the names in card games. As the use of terms in card games and classical melody tended to be similar, the names of cards were adopted as the names of melody during drinking games. Cipai and qupai were derivative words of paiming, which became popular at a later time. The primary cause for this phenomenon was the need for expression. As specific nouns to represent the melody of drama were absent, the term qupai was more readily accepted. The introduction of cipai into the study of ci-poetry resulted from the fact that “the melody of ci-poetry” could also refer to musical mode. The term pai can better express the stylistic characteristics of ci and qu genres.

Magnetic telegraph, a novel “new media” technology in the early 19^th century, created a unique historical chronotope that profoundly influenced American symbolic literary culture. However, there has been a persistent oversight regarding the poetic connection between symbolism and the magnetic telegraph. Symbolist poetry and detective stories, as observed by Marshall McLuhan, exemplified the emergence of new genres inspired by the spirit of the age of the magnetic telegraph. Yet, it is essential to recognize that the techno-cultural conditions that gave birth to the invention of the magnetic telegraph stemmed from the ancient epistemology of symbolism itself. This connection involved the providential convergence of symbolist epistemology, the discovery of electromagnetism in the early 19^th century, archaeological revelations of Egyptian hieroglyphics, and the spiritual mindset of American puritanism. This study focuses on three symbolist figures — Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Herman Melville-who bear witness to the age of the magnetic telegraph through their narrative strategies. Notably, these authors were not only inspired by the encryption techniques of the magnetic telegraph, but they also harnessed its symbolist principles in a metalinguistic sense, fostering a media-tech poetics that evolved from modelization to anamorphization and self-reflexivization.

Based on such phenomenological categories as perception and body, Paul Virilio's critical analysis of modernity displays some unusual features. Different from Jean Baudrillard's theory of simulation that ontologically denies reality, Virilio maintains that there are generations of realities, which implies that reality itself does not dissolve but is replaced by other realities. Virilio further develops a critique of modernity focusing on “speed” and constructs his philosophy of speed. He argues that speed creates new dimensions of time and space and that the social structure is thus changed through the change of bodily perception. In modern society, digital technology uses the visual-audio vehicles running at the speed of light to create tele-presence, polar inertia and mediated perception, which dissolve and dispel people's real perception and worldly experience. Virilio vehemently criticizes contemporary technology for it leads to the “doomsday” crisis of modern society. This article follows the phenomenological path of Virilio to rethink his philosophy of speed, in order to discuss the close connection between his intensive critical style and hidden nature of technology.