牟宗三創造性地提出了「審美力」這個範疇，但並未引起學界的足夠重視。其實，這是理解其思想的一個關鍵。牟宗三希望用中國傳統智慧來超越康德美學，這主要表現在以〈商榷〉一文來消化康德《判斷力批判》。該文中，他在接收康德道德優先原則之基礎上，對其理論進行了轉化和提升，其中重要一點就是，以「審美力」替換「審美判斷力」。具體而言，原因有三：1. 審美不是知識判斷，而是品鑒；2. 審美判斷無法溝通自然與自由；3. 審美與共感沒有必然的聯繫。「審美力」重心不在「力」，而在「審美」，它具有妙慧、妙感和品鑒等內涵，以及主觀性、無向性和無諍性等特點。

Mou Chung-san proposed creatively the category of “aesthetic power”, but it didn’t attract enough attention from the academic circles. In fact, it’s a key to understand his thoughts. He hoped to use Chinese wisdom to surpass Kant’s aesthetics. It’s mainly expressed in the article “Discussion” to digest Kant’s Critique of Judgment. In it, he improved Kant’s theory by accepting his moral priority principle. One of the main points is “aesthetic judgment” is replaced by “aesthetic power”. Specifically, there’re three reasons: 1. Aesthetics isn’t a knowledge judgment, but a taste; 2. Aesthetics judgment can’t communicate nature and freedom; 3. There’s no inevitable connection between aesthetics and empathy. The focus of “aesthetic power” isn’t on “force”, but “aesthetic appreciation”, it has the connotation of wonderful wisdom, sense and appreciation, as well as subjective, non-directional and uncontroversial characteristics.