Chinese Mythology - Major Concepts

Major Concepts

Some myths survive in theatrical or literary formats as plays or novels. Important mythological fiction, seen as definitive records of these myths, include:

  • Verse poetry of ancient states such as "Lisao", "Jiu Ge", and "Heavenly Questions" traditionally attributed to the authorship of Qu Yuan of Chu
  • Fengshen Bang (Investiture of the Gods), a mythological fiction dealing with the founding of the Zhou dynasty
  • Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en, published in the 1590s; a fictionalized account of the pilgrimage of Xuanzang to India to obtain Buddhist religious texts in which the main character encounters ghosts, monsters, and demons, as well as the Flaming Mountains
  • Baishe Zhuan, a romantic tale set in Hangzhou involving a female snake who attained human form and fell in love with a man

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