Monkey: Folk Novel of China
by Wu Ch'eng-en
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Book Reviews of Monkey: Folk Novel of China
Book Review: A true jewel of the imagination
Summary: 5 Stars
I believe that this is one of the greatest books ever written.
Yes, I know that's quite a claim to make! But this book actually deserves it. It's accessible, it's a ripping yarn, and quite simply it's an absolute joy to read. All this it achieves while balancing profundity and pure playfulness with a lightness and deftness of touch that leaves modern fantasists like Tolkien trailing in its wake. I realise that many people will feel I've just committed sacrilege. But... Well, like I said before, this book genuinely deserves such high praise.
READ IT! Your life will be the richer for it.
If you're after something a little more concrete, here's a brief - and spoiler free - summary...
A 20th century translation of a 16th century Chinese classic, this book tells the story of one priest's journey from China to India to fetch Mahayana Buddhist scriptures. While it is very (and I do mean VERY) loosely based on an actual priest and an actual journey, that's really not the point. This is a richly mythologised account intended as fable, not history. Gods, demons, buddhas and bodhisattvas, and even Taoist immortals all get in on the action.
As with so many tales of pilgrimage, the physical journey becomes an allegory for something more. And because we are dealing with a Buddhist allegory, in this case the metaphore is for the journey towards enlightenment.
The only qualifier I want to insert is that this is a review of the Arthur Waley traslation of Monkey (or "Journey to The West" as it is known in China) in general. I have not seen the particular edition on sale here. I do, however, have one minor quibble about this edition: the subtitle "a folk novel of China" is highly misleading. This is no folk tale. It is a serious work of high culture - cleverly disguised as a fairy tale though it may be.
Incidentally, I do realize that much of what I've just said may make this book sound somewhat dry and ponderous. Religious allegory? Serious work of high culture? Doesn't exactly sound like fun reading, does it? Yet nothing could be further from the truth. From a less skilled author and translator, religious allegory may indeed be reduced to dry sermonizing. Not so here.
This book is, like I said in the beginning, an absolute joy to read.
Theo.
Book Review: A witty and delightful translation
Summary: 5 Stars
There are some caveats to this review. All translations fail to some extent, wordplay and jokes are lost, meaningful phrasing is lost. All abridgments will leave out parts that some people love or feel are indispensable. That being said ...
The Grove Press edition of Arthur Waley's translation of Monkey: Folk Novel of China has been on my bookshelf since about 1955. It is not the same physical book. The original fell apart after much re-reading. I have let friends borrow the book and have despaired of having it returned.
I have read several other translations and none of them satisfy me. Friends who know, have told me that the Waley translation is the only one that retains the wit and flavor of the original. I believe that. The next best translation, oddly, is a translation from Chinese to Czech, then from Czech to English.
There are things that some people may find off-putting about Waley's translation. Those who are finicky about such things may think the deliberate attempt to retain the spirit rather than the exact phrasing to be distasteful. Waley's scholarship was excellent and he could have chosen to write it word-for-word, but he did not. His version is similar to Coleman Bark's translations of Rumi such as The Soul of Rumi: A New Collection of Ecstatic Poems, true to the intent, meaning, and flavor rather than a mechanical replacement of words.
The criticism that I would have to agree with is simple, there isn't enough of it! I know that an abridged version is the best that we could hope for (and even so, some of the reviewers here have complained of its length) but I sometimes hope that a cache of unpublished chapters will be discovered.
Until then, however, the distinctive white, black, and orange cover of the Grove Press edition of the Arthur Waley translation of Wu Ch'eng-en's Monkey will have a place of honor on my bookshelves.
Book Review: Ancient Chinese Huckelberry
Summary: 4 Stars
A blurb from The Nation describes the book as a "combination of picaresque novel, fairly tale, fabliau, Mickey Mouse, Davy Crocket, and Pilgrim's Progress." I would add to that list The Divine Comedy, The Odyssey, Huckleberry Finn, 1001 Arabian Nights and modern political satire. But despite the seemingly esoteric description, it is a light, breezy novel. The reader doesn't need to know who Lao Tzu is to laugh when he pinches Monkey and tells him "Be off with you, be off with you, and don't let me find you hanging round here [heaven] anymore." The reader doesn't need to have a few University years of Chinese fiction or philosophy under the belt before laughing at Monkey stuffing himself with the Jade Emperor's peaches. Nor, even, does the reader need to be steeped in morality, for, though having early attained immortality and, we all know, on fast track for Buddhahood, Monkey still likes to crack a dragon joke before clobbering one over the head with his cudgel in "a real garlic-pounding blow that will finish him off for good and all."
Waley's translation flows lightly, using a vernacular that is simple, easy and inviting, and, at the same time, reminiscent of the sagacity of the veteran Boddhisatvas, many of whom make guest appearances. It is a beautiful, wild, fun story centered around a stone-born ape, aka Monkey, aka "Aware of Vacuity," who tromps the world over in search of mischief, power, peaches, sacred texts and enlightenment. Strikingly similar to 1001 Arabian Nights in both form, wisdom, and content.
"I wonder whether a knowledge of the True Scriptures would not cause some improvement in them? Do you yourself possess those scriptures?'" asked the Bodhisattvas! `Yes, three baskets of them,' said Buddha," and the journey begins...
Book Review: Excellent Translation of Chinese Classic
Summary: 5 Stars
Monkey (or the Monkey King or The Journey to the West) is one of the great epic novels in Chinese culture. Set in the 6th century, but not written in the current form until the 16th century (it was part of an oral tradition before that), the story is on the surface about the pilgrimmage of a Buddhist Priest, Hsuan Tsang, and his 3 disciples/side-kicks: Monkey, Pigsy and Sandy, as they journey to India to bring back sacred scrolls from Buddha. Arthur Waley has done a truly impressive job of translating, editing, and bringing to life a selection of the stories (30 from 100 original chapters) from the original Chinese book. He retains the complete first section about Monkey: How he was born from a stone, the trouble and mischief he caused on earth and in heaven, and how he reached the title of Sage, Equal of Heaven until getting imprisoned in a stone under a mountain. Waley then presents a selection of the adventures that the 4 cohorts encounter in their journey to find the scrolls. Each of the adventures follow the same theme of encounter a difficulty, i.e., some people in trouble, help the people to overcome the difficulty, usually through magical or supernatural powers, and then move on. By translating an abridgement, it prevents this repetitive style from dragging on, and it stays fresh. In addition, to the basic story line, one learns much about ancient Chinese culture, Buddhism, and some about Taoism. Moreover, the 4 pilgrims rather than being model characters are actually quite flawed, which makes the stories fascinating, because it always requires a group effort to surpass each hurdle. This is a wonderful book. Translating from contemporary Chinese to English is difficult enough, but from 16th century Chinese, Waley has done an amazing job.Book Review: Exuberant fairytale with an edge
Summary: 4 Stars
Unlike most people, I didn't come to this book through the TV series - I have heard of it, but I've never seen it (although I do intend to try to find it now...).This translation covers only sections of the Monkey/Journey to the West saga, but what there is of it conveys well the flavour of the tale without outstaying its welcome. The plot, such as it is, revolves around the priest Tripitaka and his disciples (including Monkey), who have been charged to journey to the West and return with Buddhist scriptures for the enlightenment of China.
The story can, at times, be distinctly difficult to get your head around; superficially at least, it's little more than a succession of episodes involving bizarre monsters being defeated with elaborate magical powers. There is, however, plenty of humour - generally farcical in nature, although occasionally quite dry - and the bickering of the main characters is frequently entertaining. The bureaucratic nature of heaven, in which spirits and deities are assigned strictly hierarchical posts - with salaries! - is amusing regardless of how much you know of Chinese history and society.
However, many of the Buddhist and Taoist elements may be confusing to readers unfamiliar with the basic concepts. Some of the episodes rely quite heavily on outcomes grounded in, say, the workings of karma or the achievement of enlightenment - although most do conclude with Monkey and friends beating up the monsters in question, frequently with the spiritual aid of Kuan-yin and other divinities. But I do suspect that there are allusions and layers I'm missing...
To paraphrase the end-of-chapter refrain, if you want to know whether Monkey and his companions succeed on their quest, you'll have to read the book!