Reading Diary A: Chinese Fairy Tales

Reading Diary A: Chinese Fairy Tales

(Twin Dragons, Luck)

READING A:
1. The Favorite of Fortune and the Child of Ill Luck

• A line-up of suitors
• Throwing an object at the one you like
• Dragons as a good sign
• Rags to riches motif, the beggar becomes the emperor, a timeless trope
• Role reversal, the princess is now the pauper, and the pauper is the prince
• This feels sort of Princess Bride-esque
• Well, they sure know how to make a sad ending!

2. The Cave of the Beasts

• Being abandoned by a parent over something mundane, talk about a sad back story for a character. What if he intended the children to be eaten by wolves, but are instead raised by wolves?
• I think that this story deserved a more sad ending. There was no rhyme or reason. I don't see why the fox and wolf had to die. I would have liked it if the fox and wolf became their new parents. 
• Themes: guilt, survival, rage/wrath
• The children should have been the only ones to receive all the treasures, and then risen above their family. That way they could have been more spiteful for the father. The ending was wrapped up much too nicely.

3. The Panther

• This is literally just little red riding hood, and just like the wolf, the panther did not survive. 

4. Why Dog and Cat are Enemies

• Magic ring (makes me think of Lord of the Rings,) this ring makes it so you always have enough to live on. (Very appealing to me as a college student!)
• I don't like talking animals in stories
• It was okay in the end, I like origin stories. 
• The idea of this story could be made into an original story of why Vampires and Werewolves are enemies!

5. Yang Oerlang

• Wife is secretly a goddess
• Ability to be invisible or turn into birds, beasts, grass, flowers, snakes, or fishes.
• Ability to empty seas or mountain and move them.
• The Goddess is allergic to sunlight, is this why vampires are allergic to sunlight? They were once Gods or Goddesses?
• Turned into a God

6. The Lady of the Moon

• Herb of immortality
• The land of the moon
• The Queen of the Moon
• Majestic, Magical, Beautiful

7. The Girl with the Horse’s Head or the Silkworm Goddess

• Making false promises
• Promising to marry someone on a condition, but not following through with the promise.
• More punishments by deaths. 
• These stories are quite harsh. I'm not sure if they're really getting poetic justice, or just given unfair punishments.

8. The God of War

• Interesting description. (Though, I've noticed that they describe the Gods, but not the Goddesses)
• Protector against demons and foxes

9. The Miserly Farmer

• Growing more, before consuming more. This is a deep concept.

10. The King of the Ants

• Tiny people, as per usual, reminds me of faeries.
• Makes me think of a story where faeries invite a human to have a great feast with them.
• Once again, a punishment that I'm not sure was called for.