In Praise of Blandness: Proceeding from Chinese Thought and Aesthetics (Mit Press)

François Jullien’s In Praise of Blandness has by now become a classic. Appearing for the first time in English, this groundbreaking work of philosophy, anthropology, aesthetics, and sinology is certain to stir readers to think and experience what may at first seem impossible: the richness of a bland sound, a bland meaning, a bland painting, a bland poem. In presenting the value of blandness through as many concrete examples and original texts as possible, Jullien allows the undifferentiated foundation of all things — blandness itself — to appear. After completing this book, readers will reevaluate those familiar Western lines of thought where blandness is associated with lack — the undesirable absence of particular, defining qualities.