Strange Tales from Liaozhai - Vol. 2The weird and whimsical short stories in Strange Tales from Liaozhai show their author, Pu Songling (1640-1715), to be both an explorer of the macabre, like Edgar Allan Poe, and a moralist, like Aesop. In this first complete translation of the collection's 494 stories into English, readers will encounter supernatural creatures, natural disasters, magical aspects of Buddhist and Daoist spirituality, and a wide range of Chinese folklore. Annotations are provided to clarify unfamiliar references or cultural allusions, and introductory essays have been included to explain facets of Pu Songling's work and to provide context for some of the unique qualities of his uncanny tales. This is the second of 6 volumes. |
From inside the book
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... someone related them. Yang Yuwei offers to help deliver the ghostly title character “Lian Suo” (lian suo) from the male ghost trying to force her to become his concubine; by treating her with tender kindness, making her “part of the ...
... someone inside the underworld bureaucracy who can turn a blind eye to the individual's case, or with a relative or acquaintance who can exploit their own contacts to make that happen. One can even return to the living thanks to timely ...
... someone convicted by the underworld court for her or his acts (Kapstein 357; Siklós 180), even as an ultimate expression of a positive ideal, like altruism or filial piety: it doesn't change the fact that the guilty individual must ...
... someone dressed as a servant requested that he follow, till he saw a person sitting in a palace who looked like the bodhisattva, Guanyin, and who welcomed him by saying, “Your deeds Guanyin: The goddess of mercy, also known as ...
... someone. Please express my regrets to Mr. Hu.” The visitor replied, “We know for a fact that your daughter is available, so why reject the proposal this way?” Over and over again he persisted, but the host was resolute. With an ...