Journey to the West

Journey to the West was written in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) by Wu Cheng'en (approximately 1500-1582). As one of the four famous novels in Chinese literature, it is referred to as the most brilliant Chinese mythological novel.

Journey to the West tells the story of how Xuan Zang, a Buddhist monk of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), endures countless difficulties imposed by various monsters and demons, and finally traveled west to India assisted by his three disciples:

Journey to the West is the mythological novel retelling the adventures of a Tang Dynasty (618-907) Buddhist Monk Xuan Zhang and his three disciples, Monkey King (Sun Wu Kong), Pigsy (Zhu Ba Jie), and Friar Sha (Sha Wu Jing), as they travel west to India in search of Buddhist Sutra. Xuan Zhang and his disciples have to experience the so-called 81 difficulties to reach the spiritual state of immortal. Monkey King, Pig, and Friar Sha have to guard their master and battle hordes of demons who all want to capture him and eat his flesh for immortality. The story is full of magic, demons, gods, immortals, and scrumptious action and adventure!

The Monkey King is the most brilliant figure in the novel. He loves freedom and has a fighting spirit. He is arrogant and unyielding in the face of gods and Buddha, but at the same time is very obedient and loyal to his master. Xuan Zang's character embodies both the piety of a Buddhist monk and the stubbornness of a feudal scholar. The author criticizes Xuan Zang's timidity and incompetence by contrasting his character to Sun Wukong's bravery and resourcefulness. Pigsy is an important foil in the novel. He is rude and avaricious, and lusts after women. His arrogance and self-pitying behavior brings much comic relief to the novel.

Dream of Red Mansions

Dream of Red Mansions was written in late the 18th century by Cao Xueqin (1715-1763).

The novel is believed to be semi-autobiographical, mirroring the fortunes of Cao's own family. As the author details in the first chapter, it is intended to be a memorial to the women he knew in his youth: friends, relatives and servants. Cao was born into a noble and powerful family, which was reduced from extreme prosperity to poverty in his lifetime. The life of luxury in his boyhood acquainted him with the ways of noble families and the ruling class, while poverty in his later life enabled him to observe life more clearly and penetratingly. Based on his own understanding of life and with his progressive ideas, serious attitude, and high craftsmanship, he was able to create Dream of Red Mansions, a book regarded as the pinnacle of the Chinese classical novel.

The novel itself is a detailed, episodic record of the lives of the extended family, which occupies two large adjacent family compounds in the capital. Their ancestors were made Dukes and, at the beginning of the novel, the two houses still comprised one of the most illustrious families in the capital. Originally extremely wealthy and influential, with a female member made an imperial concubine, the family eventually fell into disfavor with the emperor, and had their mansions raided and confiscated. The novel is a charting of the family’s fall from the height of their prestige, centering around some 30 main characters and more than 400 minor players.

The novel is remarkable not only for its huge cast of characters (most of them female) and psychological scope, but also for its precise and detailed observation of the life and social structures typical of 18th-century Chinese aristocracy.

Editor: Dong Jirong