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1. Journey to the West/ Xijou ji; & The Jin Ping Mei
3. I. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty This period (1573-1620) saw a marked upsurge in the activities of commercial publishers.
Old novels were repeatedly reprinted, and many new novels were published.
The longer new novels often borrow their main plot lines from older works, but show much greater freedom in their treatment of the material as compared with the older novels, which had really been more in the nature of compilations.
4. I. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming?Dynasty The most important development of the traditional novel are Journey to the West???/ Xiyou ji and the Jin Ping Mei??? (an untranslatable title, based on the names of characters).
The original novel of this period is characterized by the element of reversal.
In the long run everything changes to its own opposite.
E.g. unity is followed by division, prosperity by ruin, or vice versa.
5. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty The reversal of fortunes can usually be explained by the process of retribution which operates in all that exists.
Retribution is an old Buddhist concept: every act performed by a human being carries a certain moral valence and sooner or later is rewarded or punished accordingly.
Typical popular presentations emphasize the power of supernatural beings, such as the King of Hell, to dispense these rewards and punishments.
The punishment of ones sin and the rewards for ones virtues are supposed to follow in the next incarnation.
6. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty But during the period from 1550-1650, retribution is seen more as an automatic process, inherent in life and in the ethical quality of actions, requiring for its effects no intervention by gods or demons.
The emphasis shifts from retribution in some future existence to retribution in the course of ones present life.
Concretely, this means that every good deed involving sacrifice of ones self-interest will eventually be rewarded; self-seeking at others expense will be punished.
7. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty A person is never confronted with a choice between two evils or two positive values.
The choice is always a straightforward one between good and evil, and the persons future well-being is determined by his own choice.
The retribution process applies even to the most apparently trivial actions, and the Chinese novelist of this period pays detailed attention to everyday life and the multitude of petty sins it involves.
Greed and lust are featured prominently.
8. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty The ethical aspects of individuals behavior are described in much more detail than the actual physical punishment or setting.
It is entirely clear what is done, but not necessary where or how.
The author presents the events not as unique happenings but as noteworthy, unexpected variations on general patterns.
The concrete descriptions are often followed by poems or couplets that give a sort of summing-up, often by means of a familiar proverb or saying.
9. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty The effect is to bring the initially unexpected back within the context of what is familiar and general.
At times, there is a certain interest in personal mental processes.
The authors are sometimes concerned with why some people yield to temptation while others cling to the good in the face of all difficulties.
But the action remain the thing, and the authors show nothing but contempt for those who are so weak, for whatever reason, as to make the wrong ethical choice.
10. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty Man is regarded as personally responsible for the course of his life, although certainly not in any modern existential sense.
The norms of good and evil are regarded as clearly drawn, and actions have inevitable consequences which emerge visibly in the course of the novel.
Usually the process of retribution runs through to its consequences within the space of a single lifetime.
11. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty Toward the end of this second period (early 17th century), there was a real bloom in the production of baihua??(of modern Chinese language) novellas.
These novellas typically consist of 2 stories (a short opening story and a longer main story), both of which illustrate the workings of one and the same explicitly formulated moral law.
The opening story is usually one familiar to readers, while the main story deals with a more detailed, more recent example of the same moral.
12. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty Hardly a single novel or story from this period represents a product of its authors imagination.
The authors intention is not to write fiction but to present the truth so that his fellow citizens will awake from their benighted state of folly and better their ways.
The truth means the historical truth; what is narrated must really have happened, and the author often explicitly names his sources, claiming only to have tried to make their truths more generally available.
The author does not seek to add much personal comments of his own; such commentary he gives must be authentic and objective.
13. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty To achieve a successful combination of these two elements, the author assumes the persona of a professional storyteller, full of folksy innocence and homespun virtue, who punctuates the story with his commonplaces.
In comparison to the novels of the first period, those of the second show a much wider range of characters from a broader scale of social background.
They also give more attention to the problems of ordinary folk.
14. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty However, the authors strong concern with moral issues, together with their black-&-white characterization and mechanically simplistic ethics, has earned them a reputation for facile moralism.
Though the accusation is not just in all cases, it is true that the novels and novellas of this second period lack the concept of the tragic.
There is no place in them for fate or for the dilemma.
15. Novels from the Last Century of the Ming Dynasty Though the presence of the storyteller lends a certain liveliness to these texts, its effect is limited by the authors determination to stick to true, or at any rate well-known stories.
Anything else, it seems, was rejected as being an insufficiently reliable basis for the didactic function of the written word.
16. II. Journey to the West???/ The Xiyou ji This book is supposed to have been written by Wu Chengen???(ca.1500-ca.1582), probably between 1570-1580.
The oldest survival edition dates from 1592.
Wu Chengen was a member of the literati who never passed higher-level examinations and held but modest office in his later years.
17. Journey to the West / The Xiyou ji This novel takes its material from a very old popular story cycle.
Historical Truth:
During the years 629-645 (in earlyTong Dynasty), the Chinese monk Xuanzang??(600-664) undertook a pilgrimage to India for the purpose of collecting sutras. Upon his return he was given the honorific name Sanzang??(Tripitaka), with the surname of Tong?.
Tong Sanzang recorded his story in official records when he returned back to China.
18. Overview of the Novel Influences of Chinese folk reglion, Chinese mythology, Daosim and Buddhism are present.
Adventure story-type, spiritual insight, allegory about religious journey to find self/enlightenment.
19. Overview of the Novel 100 chapters:
Part I : ch.1-7 prelude
Part II : ch.8-12biography and background
Part III : ch.13-99adventures stories
Part IV : ch.100 return journey
20. Overview of the Novel Monk Xuanzangs journey made a tremendous impression on his contemporaries and soon became a fertile source of legends, in which Xuanzangs journey was as a peril-fraught pilgrimage to the Western Paradise.
To aid him in overcoming the attendant dangers, such as repeated attacks by supernatural monsters, he was provided with supernatural helpers (his disciples) in the form of a horse, a monk, a pig, and a monkey.
Various early written versions of this story cycle have survived.
21. Overview of the Novel Whereas earlier versions of the legend featured the wise monk Xuanzang as their hero and started their narrative with his departure from China for faraway lands, Wu Chengans 100 chapter novel has its main character the monkey, Sun Wukong???.
The novel starts out with the birth of Sun Wukong.
Chapter 1-7 describe his quest for eternity and magic powers and his rebellion against the reigning authorities in heaven, for which he is eventually imprisoned under a mountain.
Chapter 9-100 deal with Xuanzangs birth and his pilgrimage.
22. The Story of Journey to the West / The Xiyou ji Soon after Xuanzangs departure from China, he loses his original retinue (human followers), instead he is accompanied by the best fighter, Sun Wukong,???who is allowed to undertake this task as penance for his rebellion.
Other traveling companions are the pig Zhu Bajie???and the Sha monk??.
Xuanzang also gets a new white horse.
The monkey, the pig, the Sha monk and the horse are all gods in Heaven in the past but they commit certain mistakes. After the journey to the West and successfully get the sutras, they can return back to Heaven and become gods again.
23. The Story of Journey to the West / The Xiyou ji Together, the new company goes through 81 perils of all sorts, most of them involving encounters with monsters seeking to eat Xuanzang.
80 of the perils are met on the journey to The Western Paradise and one on the way home.
24. Story of Journey to the West / The Xiyou ji Why do the monsters want to eat Xuanzang? For they would attain immortality if they could have the flesh of Xuanzang.
An extremely interesting book for those who retain a kids mind.
Monsters & adventure: devil tiger general, the cunning bony-woman, the seductive spider-girl, the angry cow-king, the troublesome woman-kingdom, the strong big-bird
25. Character Analysis I. Tang Sanzang??? Other names:
Tripitaka, Tang Monk, Master, Jin Chan Zi (name of his previous life, was a Buddhas disciple banished to reincarnation for disobedience to Buddhas teaching)
Personality:
A kind and passionate monk
Very obedient to the rules of Buddhism
Strongly opposed to violence and killing
Never tempted by worldly desires
Gullible, very religious
Shows stupidity and human flaws throughout the journey
26. Character Analysis I. Tang Sanzang??? Abilities
Can memorize scriptures after one reading
Can mediate for long periods of time
Can recite Tight-Fillet Spell (Band-Tightening Curse) in order to control Monkey King
Flesh is said to hold immortality, thus all demons wish to eat him
27. Character Analysis I. Tang Sanzang??? He is tricked by various demons during the journey.
He mistakes Monkey Kings good intentions as savage killing (include driving the Monkey away 2 times) and listens to the Pig, Pa-chiehs words.
Requires saving by Monkey King time after time.
At the journeys end, he attains Buddha status and is named Golden Lohan (Zheng Guo).
28. Character Analysis II. Monkey King, Sun Wukong??? Other names:
Mei Houwang(Beautiful Monkey), Stone Monkey, Qitian Dasheng (he named himself as, Saint as Great as Heaven)
Abilities:
72 transformations
Somersault
Fiery Golden Eyes
Magic Golden-clasped Rod
Various spells such as commanding wind, freezing humans, demons, and gods alike with one word
29. Character Analysis II. Monkey King, Sun Wukong??? Personality
Bravery and fearlessness
Confident
The main fighter throughout the journey
Loyal to the Master and steadfast in his promise to bring the group to India
Clever, witty, and always playful. Often plays jokes on Pa-Chieh and the devils
Strong sense of dignity, honor, and pride
Temperamental when these elements are threatened
Main flaw is overconfidence and arrogant
Selfishly wishes to be immortal and achieves his goal
Does demonstrates maturity and growth during the journey
30. Character Analysis II. Monkey King, Sun Wukong??? He was born from a rock on the summit of Flower Fruit Mountain.
Worried about death, so determined to find immoral beings and learn their ways.
After equipping with his abilities, he wants to get a post in Heaven. They make him to be the stable-keeper.
31. Character Analysis II. Monkey King, Sun Wukong??? He later finds out that it is an unimportant post so he fights with a number of gods.
Eventually, he loses the battle with the Buddha and is imprisoned for five centuries until he agrees to help Tripitaka throughout the journey.
At the journeys end, he attains Buddha status and is named Fighting Buddha.
32. Character Analysis III. The Pig, Pa-Chieh??? Pa-chieh (means to get rid of the 8 Buddhist sins)
He was the Altar Warrior God in Heaven, yet he flirted the Moon goddess. Thus, he is punished to become human again.
Abilities:
Nine-Toothed Rake (which he used to carry in Heaven)
36 Transformations
Cloud Riding
Water Abilities once in charge of the Heavenly River. Extremely useful because some perils involve water activities. (The Monkey cannot wield much power in water. )
33. Character Analysis III. The Pig, Pa-Chieh??? Personality:
His characters represents human shortcomings
His lustfulness often puts the group in danger, as he is always blinded by the beauty of woman.
He is lazy. Falls asleep in crucial moments when other are depending on him.
Greedy and gluttonous
Provides comic relief for the story
A foil to the Monkey
34. Character Analysis IV. Sha Monk?? Other names: Sha Wu Jung, Sha Seng
Abilities:
underwater battle
Cloud riding (flying)
Skilled alchemist
Carries small gourd which can enlarge, enabling the group to cross rivers
35. Character Analysis IV. Sha Monk?? Personality
Dedicated disciple
Extremely loyal to Tong Sanzang/Tripitaka
Patient, logical and polite
The mediator between the Monkey-King and the Pig.
Background and personality is the least developed among the three disciples
At the end of journey, he is transformed into an arhat (luohan) by Buddha.
36. Character Analysis V. Bodhisattva Other names:
Guanyin
Goddess of Mercy
Chineses favorite divine being
Her name means heeding the cry and she hears and helps all those who cry out to her when in need.
During the journey, she constantly appears to convey important messages or help the group.
37. 81 Perils The perils of Tong Sanzang??? starts from his previous life, to birth, through to the end of his journey of collecting sutras and back home.
81 = 9x9, meaning endless perils. (9 meaning endless in Chinese)
However, the actual perils of the journey were less than 81
38. Examples of Perils E.g. fifth and sixth perils actually belong to a single incidence
On the beginning of the journey, Tong Sanzang is accompanied by 2 human servants and 1 horse
They meet a Devil Tiger General and all except Sanzang are eaten, whereas Sanzang is saved by a god from Heaven.
39. Examples of Perils Some perils are not life threatening but related to the taming of all his 4 disciples - the monkey (chapter 13, 7 & 8 perils), the pig (chapter 18 & 19, 12 perils), the Sha monk (Ch 22, 15 & 16 perils) and the horse (Ch 15, 9 perils).
The perils of Tong Sanzang???, thus, are also the perils of the whole team Master?? and his disciples, the monkey, the pig, the Sha monk and the horse.
40. Examples of Perils E.g. Following the expel of Sun Wukong (he is expelled by Sanzang who is ignorant and erroneously misled by the cunning bony-woman), Sanzang?? asks the pig Zhu Bajieto go to find food but Bajie fells into asleep. Sanzang?? then asks the Sha monk to find Bajie. Sanzang?? is left unprotected and he is abducted by a Yellow devil.
The Yellow devil turns Sanzang?? into a tiger as if he is a monster under disguise.
Finally, Bajie?? goes to seek help from Wukong?? who finally comes back to save the life of his Master Sanzang?? (Perils 21-23)
41. Examples of Perils E.g. The group arrives the Women Kingdom. The queen wants Sanzang?? to be her wife and makes him King. Sanzang pretends to agree and go out the city to say farewell to his disciples. The Monkey King then quickly carries the Master away (perils 43).
E.g. There are two Monkey Kings and even Sanzang cannot distinguish which is the real one. They ask a number of gods in Heaven and nobody knows the truth, because both of them can perform all the abilities. Eventually, the Buddha recognizes the real Sun Wukong and the pretending one is killed by Sun (perils 57-58)
42. Examples of Perils E.g. The whole team goes through the Hot Firing Basin.
They can only get through the mountain with the help of a big magic banana leaves fan from the Princess Iron Fan.
However, both the princess and her husband, the Cow-king do not agree.
They fight 3 fierce battles and ultimately with the help of heaven guards, the team finally wins the battle and successfully borrows the magic fan and goes through the mountain (perils 47-49).
43. Stories behind the Perils All these perils are successive training of the team from the Master Sanzang?? to his disciples, Wukong??, Zhu Bajie??, the Sha monk?? and the horse.
It is only through all these perils and struggles, mistrust and reconciliation, life-threatening disasters and temptation to quit that the whole team becomes mature and finally successfully achieves the purpose of collecting sutras from India (West Paradise) back to China.
44. Stories behind the Perils All characters were full of human weakness Kind but ignorant Master Sanzang??, smart but rebellious Wukong??, lazy and lustful Zhu Bajie??, simple monk Sandy??.
It was through these perils each individual became stronger and more determined, the whole team became more harmonious and unified, their bonding became stronger that they finally achieved their Mission.
45. Analysis of Journey to the West / The Xiyou ji The characterization follows the same lines: Zhu Bajie (the pig) is an unintelligent and lusty glutton; Sun Wukong (the monkey) is ingenious but overconfident; Sandy (the monk) is diligent but conservative; Sanzang is kind-hearted but ignorant.
In the allegorical interpretation, the various dangers and monsters are the illusions that stand between man and Enlightenment, though it is usually difficult to specify which illusion is associated with which monster.
46. Analysis of Journey to the West / The Xiyou ji The foibles of human nature, social ills in Chinese society, absurd features of the Chinese pantheonall are subjected to scrutiny, giving rise to numerous comic passages.
47. III. The Jin Ping Mei??? The title of the Jin Ping Mei (Plum Bloosom in golden vase) is actually untranslatable; it is composed characters taken from the names of the three main female characters (Poon Jinling, Li Pingyee, Zhunmei ???,???,??).
It is an anonymous novel in 100 chapters, thought to been written in the 1580s, but first printed in the last year of the Wanli period under the title Jin Ping Mei Chiua.?????
48. III. The Jin Ping Mei The idea for the novel is taken from the story of Wu Song??in the Shuihu zhuan (Water Margin).
The Jin Ping Mei described in great detail the life of the apothecary Ximen Qing???and his household in a provincial town in Shandong??.
The novel is supposedly set in the early 12th century (Song Dynasty) but the social setting as described is clearly that of the 16th century (Ming Dynasty).
49. The Story of the Jin Ping Mei The story is about Ximen Qings economic and political machinations, his relationships with his various wives (eventually six), the womens mutual relationships, and Ximen Qings family (and sexual) affairs and shady business dealings.
Ximen Qings ethical misconduct results in his early and horrible death, after which his household is broken up.
50. The Story of the Jin Ping Mei The subsequent life of the other characters is keeping with their former behavior: earlier good and evil meet with later reward and punishment.
In other words, a prominent theme is the working of retribution within a single lifetime.
51. Analysis of the Characters: Ximen Qing He is the boss of the familyhis parents were death.
He inherited a herbal-medicine store from his father.
He gathered his wealth quickly and became one of the richest in the region (Shandong).
He had a lot of assets. e.g. a big house with a hugh garden, a pawn-shop, a cloth-shop, a silk-shop, a herbal-medicine shop
He later became the godson of a high official, and was given an official post.
52. Analysis of the Characters: Ximen Qing He loved women (sex) a lot and had sexual relationship with his maids, his employees wives, and prostitutes. Those women listened to him for different reasons (his status, power, money, sexual ability).
He was very calculative and clever in spending money on women.
Sudden death in his early 30s, because of over-dosed of sex-medication
53. Analysis of the Characters: Why Ximen Qing became so rich? 1. A good businessmen. His theory: Money is something that enjoys mobility
2. His wives brought in a lot of assets. e.g. His 3rd & sixth wife were extremely rich widows.
3. He ordered his employees to buy silk directly from the farmers (so as to keep the cost low) & he gave black-money to officials to avoid heavy tax across the provinces.
4. He had cash in hand. When a trader was in need of money, Ximen bought a ship of cloth in good price.
5. He was a loan-shark. (30% interest @month)
6. Much of his money came from corruption and bribery (after he became an official).
54. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 1st wife: Wu??? Ximens first wife died before the story (had a daughter, got married in the beginning).
Enjoyed all privileges of the official wife, being the head of the wives. e.g in making new clothes, triple the amount of others.
Father: a mid-level official
Traditional (under Confucian influence), conservative, good family background
Very religious, believed in Buddhism and Daoism.
In charged of the family assets e.g. Ximen kept all his money in her rooms.
Never being the favorite of Ximen but did take it for granted. Rarely jealous of other wives.
55. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 1st wife: Wu??? --- At first, she loved Poon (5th wife) very much and thought that Poon was very good. Later she found out that Poon was selfish and cruel. This showed that she was not very smart.
Pregnant when Ximen died but her son had to become a monk.
After that, she had to adopt one of Ximens close servant as her adopted son to inherit the family name and business (because there was no male in the family).
Lived till 70 year-old.
By the end, the only wife left in Ximens house
56. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 2nd wife: Li??? A prostitute before marriage
The only wife who was fat
Ximen rarely stayed in her room.
Was the familys financial controller but later her maid stole a gold-bracelet and she had to give up the post.
Not very important throughout the text
Became a prostitute again after Ximens death, then became another rich mans concubine.
57. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 3rd wife: Meng??? First married to a rich merchant of cloth
Remarried Ximen when she was 30
She remarried with all the assets (cash and cloth) left by the first husband
The 2nd richest wife of Ximen, e.g. she had two luxurious and beautiful beds
Ximen rarely slept in her room except for the first two weeks of marriage
Accepted the fact that she was not the beloved wife
She and Poon formed a group
After Ximens death, she chose a good man to be her husband and remarried. Had a happy life eventually.
58. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 4th wife: Sun??? Was the close maid of the first official wife of Ximen.
Of the lowest status among all wives
Sometimes hardly beated by Ximen
More like a servant than a wife, for she was always in the kitchen and preparing food for the family.
Throughout the story, Ximen slept only a few times in her room.
59. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 4th wife: Sun??? Always had quarrels with Poon
Had an affair with one of the main servants
After Ximens death, she wanted to run away with that servant with Ximens money. Both were caught.
Later sold by court and became the maid of Zhunmei.
60. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 5th wife: Poon??? One of the three most important female characters.
Very beautiful and sexy (loved by Ximen at first sight)
Came from a poor faimly. Father: a tailor (lower class)
Sold to a rich family and became a maid when she was nine.
Resold to another rich family when 15, and then she learned to play music.
61. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 5th wife: Poon??? Had an affair with the Master at 18, but his wife was very tough.
The wife deliberately married Poon to the ugliest man in town (the one who sold cakes in the market).
After marriage, Poon still had sexual relationship with the old Master and the husband knew and allowed that (for the Master gave them money for doing small business and renting a house).
Tried to seduce her brother-in-law (Wuzhung) but failed.
62. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 5th wife: Poon??? Met and was seduced by Ximen when she was 27.
She poisoned her husband and remarried Ximen.
Xiemn gave her a close maid, Zhunmei (one of the three most important characters in the book, who later had sexual relationship with Ximen). Zhunmei and Poon were very close.
She was very possessive and would be very angry if Ximen slept in any other wives rooms (especially after Li Pingyee gave birth to a son).
A lot of sexual descriptions between Poon & Ximen
63. Analysis of the Characters: Ximens 5th wife: Poon??? Had an affair with Ximens son-in-law after the death of Ximen.
Therefore, she was sold by Wu (1st wife) and bought by Wuzhung (brother-in-law of her first husband), for Wuzhung found out that she poisoned her first husband.
Though she thought that Wuzhung was going to marry her, she was killed.
64. Ximens 6th wife: Li Pingyee??? One of the three most important female characters
Very beautiful (loved by Ximen at the first sight), sexy, and snow-white like skin
First marriage: a concubine of a high official, who was murdered. Left her a lot of money.
Second marriage: to the nephew of the Kings servant (had an affair with the Kings servant, who later died and left her a great deal of wealth). This husband loved to stayed with the prostitutes and rarely went home.
65. Ximens 6th wife: Li Pingyee??? Met Ximen at 25 and was seduced by him. Let her husband died of illness (refused to get a doctor)
Devoted to Ximen for he could sexually satisfy her.
A lot of sexual descriptions between her & Ximen.
She married Ximen and brought in a lot of money and assets to the family.
Was the richest wife and was very generous.
Kind to the maids and servants and they all loved her.
66. Ximens 6th wife: Li Pingyee??? Ximens favorite wife, especially after the birth of a son.
Became a lovely and good wife after marrying Ximen.
Poon was very jealous of her status and favor, and said a lot of wicked things about Li. Li was very unhappy.
The son died after 1 year-old, as he was frightened by Poons cat. (Poon trained her cat to scratch packages in red for the son always dressed in red).
Li was very depressed and died in a few months.
Had an elaborative, luxurious funeral.
67. Analysis of the Characters: Zhunmei?? One of the three most important female figures.
At first, a maid of Wu(1st wife), then a close maid of Poon (whom allowed Ximen to have sexual relationship with Mei).
Arrogant and proud of herself
The most important character after Ximens death
After Ximens death, sold by Wu to become Official Zhous concubinebecause Wu found out that she had an affair with Ximens son-in-law.
She gave birth to a son and became the official wife of Zhou(after the death of the first wife).
Met and seduced by Ximens son-in-law (Chan) again
After her husbands death, she was with always with Chan and eventually exhausted to death(at the age of 29).
68. Analysis of the Jin Ping Mei In this novel, we also see the increased importance attributed to the life of ordinary people as examples of the process of retribution.
But these ordinary characters are important not so much for their unique individuality as for their aptness in embodying certain types.
69. Analysis of the Jin Ping Mei Accordingly, the author is not interested in describing individual psychological processes as such, but in questioning how it came about that certain persons, under certain circumstances in a morally unambiguous world, allowed themselves to be enticed into doing evil.
Sex being one of the most obvious of human inclinations, the author gives much attention to failings and misdeeds in this area, and there are a number of very explicit erotic passages, such as detailed description of sexual intercourse and sex-postures.
