In its long and glorious history, China has made great contributions in the field of philosophy, literature, history, science, and the arts. Although poetry has always been regarded by the Chinese as their greatest literary achievement, it is from Chinese tales--myths, fables, fantasies, legends, anecdotes, or stories of other types--that we can learn most about Chinese people and their customs. Since some of these tales were popular with common people high-minded scholars in the past looked upon them as trivial, not paying much attention to them. Not until the early twentieth century did an upsurge of interest begin. Thereafter many serious studies of Chinese tales have been made by scholars in China and abroad.
It is easy to see that most of the tales that have come down to the present day are stories of morality. This is not surprising, since most of the tales have been greatly influenced by Confucianism, which has dominated Chinese society for more than two thousand years.
Originally an ethical philosophy based on this central idea of humanity, or "human-heartedness," as taught by Confucius (551-479 B.C), Confucianism cannot be ignored when discussing Chinese culture. In the second century B.C., during a period known as the warring States in China (475-221 B.C), Confucianism became the state philosophy, and through most of the subsequent history of China, the ideas of Confucius permeated all aspects of Chinese life. Confucianism clearly typifies the mainstream of Chinese philosophy, while Taoism and Buddhism, the two religious systems which also prevailed in China during the same periods in its history, seem to have served as supplementary elements in meeting the spiritual needs of the people.
One of the most important principles in Confucianism is loyalty, or faithfulness, which lies at the center of all basic human relationships in the system. Similarly, loyalty is a major theme in many of the old tales of China and can be directed to the emperor, the king, family members, and friends. It can also be expressed toward an ideal, such a truth and Justice.
As a result of the pervasive influence of Confucianism, Chinese tales generally aim at teaching a moral lesson, especially to encourage people in the practice of performing good deeds. The Chinese strongly believe that evildoers will be punished and that virtue will be rewarded. Many Chinese, whether they realize it or not, seem to have an ethical conscience hanging weightily over them, not unlike that of Jiminy Cricket in the story of Pinocchio.
The following five tales are selected from a variety of sources within the rich body of Chinese literature, ranging in type from fable to anecdote, all having some reference to reality or a touch of fantasy. They come from periods as far back as the fifth and fourth centuries B.C. to the fourth and fifth centuries A.D. In any case, except for one whose date is unknown, all of them are more than 1,5000 years old. The fact that they are still of interest to us today is an indication of their timelessness.
"The Clam and the Sandpiper," written in the form of a fable, is the oldest of these stories. It came from the period of the Warring States, one of the most colorful periods of Chinese history. Many states coexisted with one another in that period before all of them were welded together into one empire in 221 B.C. by
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