Aesop's Fables

Author: (Ming) Feng Menglong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-01-01
Features: A Collection of Stories for Enlightenment (Yushi Mingyan), compiled by Feng Menglong of the Ming Dynasty, is a selection of storytelling novels from the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties. It is part of the "Three Canons" alongside A Warning to the World (Jingshi Tongyan) and A Constant Awakening (Xingshi Hengyan). This book is one of the "Three Canons." The initial version of A Collection of Stories for Enlightenment was titled Stories of the Past and Present (Gujin Xiaoshuo), with the full title Complete Illustrated Stories of the Past and Present. It was later renamed A Collection of Stories for Enlightenment for consistency with the titles of the other works in the "Three Canons." For this publication, our publishing house has adopted the same name. The book comprises forty volumes, with one story per volume, totaling forty stories. Like A Warning to the World and A Constant Awakening, it is a collection of storytelling novels from the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties. The works cover a wide range of themes and complex content, including condemnation of the vices of feudal officials and praise for the virtues of upright officials, as well as odes to friendship and love, and condemnation of treacherous and faithless behavior. Many stories depict the lives of ordinary people in the streets and markets, painting a vivid picture of the "thousand strange and bizarre events" and "various kinds" of the time,ing the vibrant scenes of the streets and markets during the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties. This book is a realist popular novel, a product of the economic development of commodity in the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties, and also a literary symbol of its era, showcasing the level of Chinese folk literature. Most of the stories in the book are complete with intricate plots, realistically portraying human emotions and behaviors, and skillfully depicting characters with lifelike charm, leaving behind many unforgettable figures and works enjoyed by both the refined and the common.