Illustrated Culture Treasures Series - Mermaid

Author: Xiao Bing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-01-01
Features: In Copenhagen, Denmark, sits the Little Mermaid from Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, while the sword-and-shield-bearing mermaid in Warsaw, Poland, is the city's coat of arms. In ancient Greece, the Sirens, or mermaids, lured sailors to their doom with their songs. Do mermaids really exist in nature? What is their archetype? Why can they embody the unity of life and death, as well as the duality of good and evil? What is the connection between them and the theory that "humans originated from the ocean"? This book will illustrate the imagery of life and death. The "Illustrated Cultural Curiosities Series" consists of three titles: The Mermaid—Imagery of Sex, Life, and Death, The Tibetan Mastiff—Spiritual Dogs, Demons, and Divine Insects, The Butterfly Dream—Love, Soul, Rebirth, and Aesthetics. All three are set against the backdrop of Chinese culture, spanning comparative studies across East and West to decode the ancient cultural mysteries. This is a popularization of folkloristics written by the renowned cultural anthropologist, Professor Xiao Bing, for a broad readership.