Abstract:

Within his “doctrine of wisdom” and from the perspective of a broad epistemology, Feng Qi’s philosophy of language systematically explores the nature, characteristics, and functions of language, as well as its relationship to thought and reality, and offers a creative response to the issue of how to express the ineffable. Integrating Jin Yuelin’s instrumentalism of language with the Marxist view of practice, Feng emphasizes the cognitive function of language by both describing and prescribing the given. He also stresses its nature as a material, historical, and social practice of humankind. Regarding the relationship between language and thought, he distinguishes theoretical thinking from imaginative thinking, revealing the dual role of language in abstract expression and flavor transmission. On the relationship between language and reality, he maintains a materialist stance, asserting that language, as the material form of thought, indirectly reflects objective reality. Concerning the ineffable, Feng advances both “mysterious speech” characterized by the combination of manifestation and concealment and “dialectical synthesis” as the modes of expression, thereby inheriting and further developing ideas from Jin Yuelin and traditional Chinese philosophy. His theoretical contribution lies in bridging philosophical resources from both Chinese and Western traditions, enriching the intellectual connotations of Chinese philosophy of language while bearing significance for world philosophy. Nonetheless, his thought exhibits certain limitations, such as insufficient attention to the practical dimension of linguistic expression.

Key words: Feng Qi, philosophy of language, the ineffable, mysterious speech, dialectical synthesis