 |
[email protected] |
 |
3275638434 |
 |
 |
| Paper Publishing WeChat |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
A Comparative Study on the Image of Foxes in Taiping Guangji and Konjaku Monogatarishu
TONG Peiran
Full-Text PDF
XML 36 Views
DOI:10.17265/2159-5836/2026.07.003
University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
Foxes are highly representative supernatural entities in Sino-Japanese classical literature. This paper compares fox imagery in the Chinese Taiping Guangji and the Japanese Konjaku Monogatarishu to examine how both traditions depict otherworldly entities across three dimensions: inter-species romance, human-fox conflicts, and the construction of divinity. In Taiping Guangji, foxes are highly anthropomorphized and socialized; they mirror patriarchal ethics and integrate into secular bureaucracies. Conversely, foxes in Konjaku Monogatarishu retain their animalistic instincts on the margins of human society, often functioning as mediums to demonstrate Buddhist karmic retribution or highlight human dominance. This comparative analysis elucidates the distinct narrative trajectories of fox tales in China and Japan, enriching the cross-cultural study of otherworldly literature.
Taiping Guangji, Konjaku Monogatarishu, fox imagery, Sino-Japanese comparison
Journal of Literature and Art Studies, July 2026, Vol. 16, No. 7, 584-592
Fu, Z. X. (2024). Liaozhai Zhiyi he Jinxian Wuyuji zhong hu xingxiang de yitong [Similarities and differences in fox imagery between Liaozhai Zhiyi and Konjaku Monogatarishu]. Baike Zhishi [Encyclopedic Knowledge], 46(24), 10-11, 23.
Hua, Y., & Song, W. (2013). "Taiping guangji" zhong de huyao gushi yanjiu [A study of fox spirit tales in Taiping Guangji]. Qingchun Suiyue [Youth Years], (16), 26-27.
Li, F., et al. (1961). Taiping Guangji [Extensive records of the Taiping era]. Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company.
Nakagawa, H. (2016). Setsuwa bungaku ni okeru hebi to kitsunetan no hensen [The evolution of snake and fox tales in Setsuwa literature]. Kokubungaku Ronso [Journal of Japanese Literature], 61, 1-26.
Nakamura, T. (2017). Kitsune no Nihonshi: Kodai, chuseibito no inori to jujutsu [A Japanese history of foxes: Prayers and magic of ancient and medieval people] (revised ed.). Tokyo: Ebisukosyo Publishing.
Yamada, Y., et al. (Eds.). (1993). Konjaku Monogatarishu (Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei) [Anthology of tales from the past]. Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten.
Yang, J. (2014). Konjaku Monogatarishu to Ryosai Shii no kitsunetan ni tsuite [On the fox tales in Konjaku Monogatarishu and Liaozhai Zhiyi] (Master’s thesis, Xi’an International Studies University, 2014).
Zheng, Y. M. (2020). Huli bianshentan de Zhong Ri bijiao yanjiu [A Sino-Japanese comparative study of fox transformation tales] (Master’s thesis, Beijing Foreign Studies University, 2020).