10 Responses to “Myths and Legends of China”

1. Anonymous says:

   July 29, 2010 at 2:30 pm

   To appreciate this book you must take it with a grain of salt (or several). The author is a an old school orientalist, writing in the days when the Chinese Empire still had an emperor and was thoroughly infilitrated by colonial powers (fyi, thats before WWII). To a modern reader Werner seems condescending, but you can tell he has a genuine love for Chinese culture and people even when he is moralizing about the failures of their society at the time. In any event, the depth and breadth of the compilation of myths and tales is excellent, as is the historical context that the author provides. The only flaw is that the order and index is not quite as clear as you might like – several tales are told together in a single chapter, and references to characters in other tales are not always clear due to the numerous names used for some mythological figures. If you can get a version with the original color prints, its a real plus.
   Rating: 4 / 5
2. R. Adams says:

   July 29, 2010 at 3:37 pm

   The good thing about this text is the sheer number of mythological stories and folktales which have been translated. Many of the stories are rarely translated and they include a great deal of traditional Chinese folk religion, Taoist, and Confuscinist stories. The immortals, and many rare Taoist tales, are represented here–which is remarkable and useful for well-versed scholars of Chinese mythology and Taoism.

   The (very) bad thing about this text is that most of the volume is taken up by the author’s unbridled, negative personal commentary on Chinese religion, beliefs, and culture. I know, it sounds strange, especially since he chose to translate and publish a text on Chinese culture, but nevertheless, I am not the only student of Chinese culture and history who has noticed this about “Myths and Legends of China.”

   I found myself reacting with surprise to many of E.T.C. Werner’s snide, offhanded, completely ungrounded observations–many of which are rooted in nothing more than his attempt to discredit Chinese customs and religious beliefs. Even understanding the era in which the book was written, I had to keep swallowing salt to press through the introduction.

   I teach courses on Chinese Taoism and Chinese Mythology and I always warn my students to take the entire book gently and to let some of the commentary bounce off. Just ignore the commentary and try to press on.

   It does lead me to wonder how many of the stories have been altered to fit Werner’s views… not unlike Bulfinch’s “abridgment” of some of the Greek and Roman myths which contained concepts like homosexuality, that he disliked.

   I should add that the first review posted on this product is correct–Werner is a classical orientalist, and the book is a product of a very specific time frame and state of mind. It absolutely contains rare stories which are underrepresented in other texts, including many tales of Immortals, Chinese folk religions, etc.

   My two-star rating still sticks, as I only think this book is useful for scholars who can recognize the “orientalism” for what it is, and cut right through to the valuable stories, or for scholars trying to illustrate what “orientalism” was all about.

   It’s not good for the casual reader of Chinese folk tales.
   Rating: 2 / 5
3. Anonymous says:

   July 29, 2010 at 6:01 pm

   Filled with intellectual babble and snide personal comments of the Chinese culture, this author definitely sheds an angry light on Chinese culture. If you must buy this book head straight to the stories because the first half of this book is more suited for the opinion section of a newspaper and will leave a bad taste in your mouth.
   Rating: 1 / 5

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