Ancient Chinese Fables
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Authors
Yang, Gladys (translator)
Yang, Xianyi
Issue Date
1957
Type
Book, Whole
Language
Keywords
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Abstract
Sixty-two fables with simple illustrations. The cover is pictorial paper-covered boards. Only fables are included here that are both ancient and still in use today. The golden age of Chinese fables was, in their phrase, the third and fourth century B.C. There is a fascinating political twist on 4-5: the people reinterpreted rulers' fables and so made base metal into gold. Typically, these fables play off of varying perceptions of reality; they invite to a new kind of perspective, often a more comprehensive one. Some of my favorites include The Bird Killed by Kindness (10), Suspicion (16), The Man Who Sold Spears and Shields (27), Waiting for a Hare to Turn Up (29), The Snipe and the Mussel (37), The Fox Who Profited by the Tiger's Might (38), The Wrong Direction (39), and The Holy Eel (60). Note The Blind Man and the Lame Man (48), which exactly corresponds to our fable.
Description
Citation
Publisher
Foreign Languages Press