Four Great Chinese Works

Dream of the Red Chamber/Story of the Stone ● by Cao Xueqin ● About the Chia Family ● The family has imperial ties ● They build the Grand View Garden for Yuan­Chun ○ She is an imperial concubine ● Chia Pao­Yu is the protagonist ○ Born with a piece of jade in his mouth ○ It is called the Jade of Spiritual Understanding ○ Chia Chang is Pao­Yu’s father ○ As a young man he is a romantic who writes poems ○ Loves Tai­Yu, and is going to marry her ○ His family tricks him into marrying Pao­Chai ○ After this he leaves and becomes a monk ○ He goes to fairyland in a dream ○ He meets a goddess who shows him 12 beauties, and they sing him 12 songs ○ Target of an assassination plot by Lady Chao and her son

Journey to the West ● by Wu Cheng’en ● Sandy and Pigsy ● Tripitaka ● Sun Wukong ● Guan Yin ● White Bone Demon ● can do acrobatics in the clouds ● knows 72 types of transformations ● born from a stone egg ● a nine­tooth iron rake ● a 7.5 ton golden rod that changes sizes ● character is sealed in a mountain ● transforms into a fly ● eats peaches of immortality ● the “Golden Cicada” ● character breaks a vase ●

Outlaws of the Marsh/Water Margin ● attributed to Shi Nai’an ● may be written by Luo Guanzhong, Shi Hui, or Guo Xun ● set in the Song dynasty ● 108 outlaws ○ 36 Heavenly stars ○ 72 Earthly stars ○ also called the Stars of Destiny ● Chao Gai ● Song Jiang ● Fang La ● Yan Poxi ● He Tao ● Mystic Queen of the Ninth Heaven ● the Righteous Seven ● character is released from a stone tortoise ● Huang An ● Mt. Shaohua ● Mt. Wutai

Romance of the Three Kingdoms ● by Luo Guanzhong ● Set during the Yellow Turban Rebellion near the end of the Han Dynasty ● Three states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu ● Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Liu Bei swear an oath in a peach garden ● Cao Cao is the primary antagonist ● Battle of Red Cliffs ○ Straw boats are used ● Lady Sun ● Diao Chan ● Dong Zhou ● A character wears bells around his waist ● Young (Fledgling) Phoenix and Sleeping Dragon ● Red Hare is a horse