翁方綱的杜詩學結合了其詩論「肌理說」，豐富而多樣。他認為杜詩之偉大在於體現了「理」的存在，因此他對杜詩的態度有別於格調與神韻，強調崇杜而不仿杜的特質。他以五十年讀杜的心得撰成《杜詩附記》，其中對舊注的訛誤與舊說的偏謬皆有駁正，同時藉杜詩闡發自我詩學觀點，並以杜詩為媒界，展開與其他詩論的對話。因此翁方綱的杜詩學，除了在廓清舛誤上頗有貢獻外，亦從中浮現了肌理說要義。而翁方綱突破傳統以貼近杜詩為宗旨的論杜方式，以「代聖人立言」的批評手段，將杜詩引為己用，表現了另一層次的杜詩批評。

Weng’s adoption of the “Flesh Texture Theory” provides a wealth of
informative and broad discussion of Du’s poetry. He believes the use of
“orderly arrangement” and the justification of its existence makes Du’s poetry stand out. Unlike Ge Diao Theory (Formal Style) and Shen Yun Theory
(Spirit and Tone), he holds different views toward Du’s poetry. He puts
emphasis on appreciation rather than imitation of Du’s poetry. His
“Annotation of Du’s Poetry” was written after fifty years study. He points
out and clarifies incorrect annotation and misinterpretation of Du’s poetry done by the predecessors. By studying Du’s poetry, he develops his own perspectives on poetry, and at the same time, he starts his dialogue with other theorists on the subject of Du’s poetry. Weng makes great contributions on correcting misinterpretation of Du’s poetry, and the essence of Flesh Texture Theory is evolved from his study of Du’s poetry. His analysis is very different from traditional views. He takes the approach of getting closer to Du’s poetry and leaving wonderful expressions for the descendant’s reference on behalf of Du. His adoption of Du’s words has substantially extended the scope to comment Du’s poetry.