历来论者对朱光潜与陈寅恪的陶渊明之争聚诉纷纭、莫衷一是，诸多问题需要重新省思和澄清。写作《陶渊明》的“直接诱因”是朱光潜对《陶渊明之思想与清谈之关系》中部分论断的存疑，暗含的“间接诱因”就是他对鲁迅批判的一种非“心悦诚服”的全面回应，体现了其治学求实的精神追求。以儒家倾向为主的阐释本质是否“异化”为朱光潜想要在社会政治舞台上“起而行道”,从新见史料《谈心》一文中可以看出朱光潜的内心并没有这种想法。因此，学者所称“移情作用”的“起而行道”的说法值得商榷”。对陶渊明钟情六十余载，朱光潜凭借深厚的诗学功底，潜心研阅陶渊明的诗、赋、传、文等著述，久久为功撰写《陶渊明》,在长期学术思考和诗学积淀的基础上力求深入理解陶渊明。

Based on the ideological system characteristics of Huainanzi centered on the theory of Huang-Lao and mixed with hundreds of schools of thought, the aesthetic thought it involves must also have such characteristics reflected on the elucidation of the aesthetic problem of "quality". Under the premise of emphasizing that "there must be its quality, it is the text for it", Huainanzi comprehensively expounds on the aesthetic connotation from three aspects: aesthetic "quality", medium "quality" and ugly "quality". The speculative thought of constructing the "quality" beauty of "the most pure beauty", "the beauty of literary decoration" and "the beauty of transformation" is of the value and significance for discussion at that time and even now.