"The Monkey and the Monk": An Allegory

Book Review # 104770

Asian Studies > East Asian Cultures
English > Creative Writing
Literature > World

An examination of a major theme of social criticism in the abridged novel, "The Monkey and the Monk," based off of the Chinese classic, "The Journey to the West," by Anthony Yu.

1,775 words () | 1 source | MLA | 2008 United States

Paper Summary:

The author of this paper examines a major theme in the novel, "The Monkey and the Monk": that of the extraordinarily complicated and multi-layered bureaucracy of Chinese imperial society; manifested in the novel in the form of the celestial bureaucracy of Heaven. The essay explores this aspect of the work, with a particular reference to the figure of Sun Wukong or Monkey King.

From the Paper:

"Clearly, this interaction of Monkey King with the Heavenly bureaucracy is depicted as a comic satire of the excessive claims of bureaucratic power. For readers of this story, it may be argued that an implied social criticism of the Chinese imperial bureaucracy would be inescapable. While the Jade Emperor would seem to be the Heavenly parallel to the Chinese Emperor, the fact that the power of even this eminent celestial being seems to be bound by records and accounts implies that the power of the earthly emperor is subject to such restrictions as well."

Sample of Sources Used:

Yu, Anthony, ed. and trans. The Monkey and the Monk: A Revised Abridgement of "The Journey to the West". Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006.

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APA Citation:

"The Monkey and the Monk": An Allegory (2012, January 15). Retrieved February 10, 2012, from http://www.academon.com/Book-Review-The-Monkey-and-the-Monk-An-Allegory/104770

MLA Citation:

""The Monkey and the Monk": An Allegory" 15 January 2012. Web. 10 Feb. 2012. <http://www.academon.com/Book-Review-The-Monkey-and-the-Monk-An-Allegory/104770>