Journey to the West (Volume 1 and 2) (New Curriculum Standard Reading Series)

Author: Wu Cheng'en
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-05-01
Features: To comprehensively improve the Chinese literacy of primary and secondary school students, enhance the modern awareness of Chinese teaching courses, and vigorously promote new learning methods, the Ministry of Education issued the "Full-time Compulsory Education Chinese Curriculum Standards" and the "General High School Chinese Curriculum Standards" as core content of the basic education curriculum reform in 2001 and 2003, respectively. The "Chinese Curriculum Standards" serve as the basis for teaching, assessment, and exam question setting, as well as the foundation for national curriculum management and evaluation, reflecting the fundamental requirements of the state for students at different stages in terms of knowledge, skills, processes, and methods. Compared to the original "Chinese Teaching Syllabus" for primary and secondary schools, the "Chinese Curriculum Standards" have made significant revisions to the specific titles of extracurricular reading materials in the original syllabus and stipulated the total amount of reading required for students at different stages, urging primary and secondary school students to read widely. To this end, we have compiled and published this series of "New Curriculum Standards Chinese Reading Series," with all the book titles designated by the new standards. To assist students in reading, we have included an introductory essay before each classic, providing an in-depth yet accessible introduction to the relevant information about the book.
The Journey to the West is distinguished in art by its wit. Although the novel still tells the story of Tang Sanzang's pilgrimage to the West, within this established framework, it is filled with diverse and heterogeneous content, revealing a rebellious and unconventional spirit. In the novel, everything is secularized, and the author uses the experience and psychology of the secular world to depict and observe this divine and Buddhist world. By secularizing the gods and buddhas, the author occasionally mocks and teases them with irreverence, which, to some extent, alleviates their mystery and sanctity, and creates the fundamental style of this novel—combining solemnity and wit, transforming solemnity into wit.
Additionally, the formation of the wit effect relies on the characteristics of the characters in the work, specifically the unity of their animal nature, divine nature, and human nature. Sun Wukong embodies the agility, restlessness, and love for showing off of a monkey, as well as the divine abilities of 72 transformations and flying on clouds and mist. He also possesses the perseverance of a religious devotee.