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The Tower of Myriad Mirrors (Michigan Classics in Chinese Studies) | 
| Author: Yueh Tung
Publisher: Center for Chinese Studies, The Universi
Category: Book
List Price: $20.00
Buy New: $18.00
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New (4) Used (7) from $13.84
Avg. Customer Rating:  3 reviews
Sales Rank: 1345869
Media: Paperback
Edition: 2
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 150
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.5
ISBN: 0892641428
Dewey Decimal Number: 895.1348
EAN: 9780892641420
ASIN: 0892641428
Publication Date: October 4, 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: ISBN 0892641428 The Tower of Myriad Mirrors (Michigan Classics in Chinese Studies) Unused Text (DAH) QW
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
China's most outrageous character--the magical Monkey who battles a hundred monsters--returns to the fray in this seventeenth-century sequel to the Buddhist novel Journey to the West. In The Tower of Myriad Mirrors, he defends his claim to enlightenment against a villain who induces hallucinations that take Monkey into the past, to heaven and hell, and even through a sex change. The villain turns out to be the personification of his own desires, aroused by his penetration of a female adversary's body in Journey to the West.
In this, his only novel, author Tung Yueh (1620-1686), a monk and Confucian scholar, picks up the slapstick of the original tale and overlays it with Buddhist theory and bitter satire of the Ming government's capitulation to the Manchus. After a nod to Journey's storyteller format, Tung carries Monkey's quest into an evocation of shifting psychological states rarely found in premodern fiction. An important though relatively unknown link in the development of the Chinese novel and window into late Ming intellectual history, The Tower of Myriad Mirrors further rewards by being a wonderful read.
Shuen-fu Lin is Professor of Chinese literature at the University of Michigan. Larry Schulz holds a Ph.D. in Chinese intellectual history from Princeton University and has published his dissertation, "Lai Chih-te and the Phenomenology of Change," and articles on traditional Chinese medicine. He is currently a senior officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
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| Customer Reviews:
Do not read the introduction. June 16, 2001
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I have not yet read this book, though I have high expectations since Monkey is one of my favorite literary characters. This is not a rating, but a warning: DO NOT READ THE INTRODUCTION. The inconsiderate translator gives away essential information -- spoilers, in other words. Argh! I hate that. I hope I can save other potential readers some frustration.
Ably translated into English for a western readership May 22, 2001
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The latest addition to the outstanding "Michigan Classics in Chinese Studies" series, Tung Yueh's The Tower Of Myriad Mirrors, is ably translated into English for a western readership by Shuen-fu Lin and Larry J. Schulz. Tung Yueh (1620-1686) provides an illuminating example of Chinese literature written to both entertain and enlighten with its mythological cast of characters. This precursor to the modern novel will prove especially fascinating and informative for students and scholars of Chinese fiction as a specialized literary form.
Journey Through the Psyche of a Mystical Monk February 8, 2001
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
Almost four hundred years before movies like "The Sixth Sense" shocked audiences with surprise endings, Tung Yueh's "Tower of Myriad Mirrors" was blowing away mid 17th century China with its own original brand of psyche-out plot twists. "Tower" was a gripping tale to its originally intended audience, and the story has stood the test of time and is read to this day due to its fantastic imagery and imaginative method of imparting Buddhist theory. I read "Tower of Myriad Mirrors" for a class in traditional Chinese literature and enjoyed it thoroughly. I have an avid interest in traditional and contemporary Chinese literature, but a serious background in this genre is not necessary to understand and enjoy "Tower..." All that is needed is good concentration and patience, and perhaps a quick online look at background information on Mahayana Buddhism. The story may appear confusing and disjointed at times, but if you persevere, you will find that everything comes together beautifully in the last chapter. Keep in mind that it is imperative to read the forward - it provides the necessary orientation needed to understand the story. "Tower's" protagonist, a somewhat wayward monk named Monkey (who has, in fact, the outward appearance of an ape) embarks on a fantastical journey in search ways to help his master reach India, where they are to procure Buddhist scriptures to bring back to China. Tung Yueh wrote this 16-chapter novella (most Chinese novels are in excess of 100 chapters) as a supplement to the famous narrative "Journey to the West" as a way to explore the psyche of the Monkey character. It is elegantly written and conjures imagry that is beautiful and exotic as well as brutal and violent. Written in 1640, "Tower..." is an excellent example of the traditional vernacular stories that were widely used to relate the messages of Buddhism to the masses. To hold the attention and stay in the memory of common Chinese, the stories often involve fantastic imagery, scores of monsters and evil beings, beautiful women, and impossible feats of magic - all of which are evidenced in "Tower..." The Buddhist message of "Tower" is that one must strive to overcome the demons of desire within oneself - and this message is delivered by means of a fascinating journey through a dream world conjured up Monkey's mind. While "Tower of Myriad Mirrors" is not an easy read, it is a rewarding one. This edition is well translated and provides many helpful footnotes that will enable readers not well-versed in the background of Chinese vernacular religious stories or Buddhism to understand. Approach it with an open mind and perhaps a willingness to look up some information on Mahayana Buddhism, and you won't be disappointed.
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