Introduction

The discussion revolves around Snow's view on the separation of the two cultures—natural sciences and arts/humanities—and how the "physician-poets" of continental Europe, particularly in Germany, attempted to bridge this divide. Special mention is made of the German poet Benn, a representative of expressionism and a pillar of post-war literature, whose works reflect the tension between natural sciences and arts/humanities. Benn's creative history mirrors Germany's modernization, blending scientific terminology and methodologies to explore the relationship between reality and art. While existing research often remains trapped in binary opposition paradigms, it overlooks the "constants" in Benn's thought. This article proposes the concept of "Bildung" (self-cultivation) as a theoretical anchor for understanding Benn's works, emphasizing individual self-development and holistic growth. Benn's "great art" philosophy integrates natural sciences and arts/humanities, aiming to advance human cultivation and evolution. The article chronologically analyzes Benn's "great art" philosophy, examining its connection to his early education and its influence on his literary practice.

1. The Learning Years: Artistic Thought and the Tradition of Bildung

Influenced by his Protestant pastor family, Benn was well-versed in the Bible, and his artistic thought was shaped by Western humanist traditions. At the University of Marburg, he studied philosophy, philology, and other disciplines, delving into classical philology, theology, and psychology while actively engaging in sports and developing an interest in music. This period profoundly shaped his reading habits, creative vocabulary, and artistic inclinations. Benn's artistic philosophy drew from the Western liberal arts tradition, advocating for the integration of diverse knowledge to achieve the "wholeness" of humanity as the highest ideal. He emphasized breaking down disciplinary barriers, synthesizing knowledge into a "harmonious whole" to attain freedom—a hallmark of artistic maturity. This inclusive "great art" concept began to take root during his formative years.

2. Pre-World War II: Evolutionary Myths and Literary Practice

Benn's literary career began after switching to medicine, as he sought to merge natural sciences and arts/humanities to address the alienation of humanity in academia and society. In the 1910s, he experimented with literature, attempting to combine art and politics to realize his Bildung ideal. At the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute, Benn studied medicine and biology, encountering biological evolution theory but focusing more on experimental psychology to explore the "body-mind" duality. His artistic theory was rooted in the Enlightenment-era Bildung tradition, inheriting Kant's views on the roles of natural sciences and arts/humanities, and influenced by Goethe. Benn observed that natural sciences were becoming increasingly empirical and specialized, alienating humanity from the world, leading him to abandon academic research in 1913. The trauma of lost faith became a central theme in his works. His shift from natural sciences to art reflected a self-adjustment amid the conflict between Bildung ideals and societal realities, foreshadowing the direction of his later artistic thought.

Before the mid-1920s, Benn remained apolitical, but the turmoil in Germany in late 1918 prompted deeper reflection on Bildung and the roles of natural sciences and arts/humanities. His critiques of education policies and research institutions grew sharper, and his stylistic choices became more radical. His views exhibited duality: while advocating for art and critiquing natural sciences, he also began incorporating evolutionary theory into his works. Borrowing Hölderlin's rhetoric, Benn divided history into "three days and two nights," urging humanity to reconnect with the cosmos through the body, reevaluate values for freedom, and embrace the "third day." Art became his escape from societal discipline, serving as the highest law of the "third day," surpassing theology and natural sciences. Benn saw artistic genius as the most extreme form of value reevaluation, tasked with exploring humanity's direction and mission, using poetry to reveal insights and promote societal and human evolution.

To meet society's need for "guides" in evolutionary development, Benn did not reject natural sciences but incorporated their findings, hoping to nurture artistic genius—a key reason for his collaboration with the Nazi regime. His artistic philosophy aligned with Nietzsche's Übermensch concept, viewing art as closer to truth while still valuing natural sciences. Benn embraced empirical scientific experiments as vital tools for uncovering truth. He critiqued not progressivism itself but how "progress" was defined by educational systems. His view of natural sciences emphasized creativity, with arts and humanities also serving truth-seeking functions. He saw natural sciences and arts/humanities as complementary, with both aiding humanity's escape from alienation and pursuit of wholeness. Though he had yet to propose a concrete plan for their integration, his "great art" vision, rooted in Bildung and societal development, was clearly emerging.

3. "Great Art": Post-War Art and Reality

This chapter explores Benn's post-war views on art and reality and the evolution of his artistic philosophy. Suppressed by the Nazi regime, Benn abandoned political means to achieve Bildung, reverting to an elitist artistic identity while maintaining distance from reality. He proposed his "great art" concept, emphasizing the separation of artistic space from the everyday world, with aesthetic form as the highest principle. Though his Bildung ideal remained unchanged, he grew pessimistic about collective progress into the "third day," believing only true art could break historical cycles. He stressed the craftsmanship and technicality of art, viewing fully self-contained art as the antidote to nationalism, racism, and historical determinism. Benn's late-period philosophy focused on cultivating artists, who should isolate themselves in artistic reverie. Yet, he did not fully withdraw from society, actively disseminating his ideas and engaging with academia. His later poetry adopted simpler forms, using folk song stanzas and colloquial styles. Benn saw art as integral to human spiritual development, with poetic craftsmanship requiring vast vocabulary and the ability to transcend existing subjectivity. His proposed "future style" resembled Enlightenment-era liberal arts ideals, aiming to synthesize all human knowledge into new cognitive paradigms and models, breaking alienation and restoring humanity's connection to the world. For Benn, art and reality shared a paradoxical dialectical relationship: art originates from yet distances itself from reality, with artists as "survivors" or sages forging paths in darkness to answer reality's questions.

Conclusion

Benn viewed modernity's key distinction from antiquity as heightened alienation. Since the 15th-century acceleration of knowledge production, Western society underwent dramatic changes, with the concept of "humanity" marginalized post-18th century. The specialization of natural sciences stripped literature and philosophy of their authority to interpret the world, leading to modern maladies and alienation. Artists and educational institutions, Benn argued, must help humanity escape this fate. His career can be summarized as "three shifts, two constants." The shifts reflect the evolving roles of natural sciences and art in his works across three phases: the early 20th century, when his "great art" concept emerged, seeking to bridge spirit and matter through psychology and medicine; 1910s–early 1930s, when he attempted societal reform through art; and the final phase, where he fused natural sciences and traditional art into a new vision. The constants are that natural sciences and art were never binary opposites, and his Bildung ideal remained unwavering, always seeking connections between science and art. Benn's artistic philosophy emphasized cultivating holistic personalities to promote human dignity and freedom, aligning with Goethe and Humboldt's Bildung ideals while opposing the "instrumental rationality" of educational systems. His ideas resonate with mid-20th-century German debates on education and today's "new humanities" demands. Though Benn himself strayed into misguided paths, his vision for artistic reform remains strikingly forward-thinking.