85 pages • 2 hours read
Wu Cheng'en, Transl. Anthony C. YuThe Journey to the West: Volume I
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1592A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Themes
Good Versus Evil and the Power of Redemption
Many of the humans, gods, and monsters in the novel all strive for self-improvement. Because Buddhists believe in reincarnation, behavior during one’s lifetime influences what kind of life one will be born into next. When the Monkey King lives among people for the first time, “He saw, however, that the people of the world were all seekers after profit and fame; there was not one who showed concern for his appointed end” (109). While this is predominantly a reference to mortality, it also shows that people were greedy and fame-obsessed before the pilgrim’s quest for dharma.
Wukong himself is desperate for fame. When the pupils studying with Patriarch ask Wukong to show off, Wukong is eager to do so, but Patriarch reprimands him: “I ask what sort of exhibition you were putting on, changing into a pine tree? This ability you now possess, is it just for showing off to people?” (124). However, there is the possibility for redemption, even for characters like Wukong who have committed many atrocities: “When the time of his chastisement was fulfilled, they were told, someone would be coming to deliver him” (199). The text itself serves as an instructive tool for demonstrating which behaviors are acceptable and which are not.
The Juxtaposition of Pride and Humility
Though pride can be positive, excessive pride—hubris—can lead to one’s downfall. Wukong is a prime example: He is proud by nature and ends up trapped and imprisoned under a mountain for 500 years.
Wukong learns that his first job in Heaven—to look after the horses—is the lowest ranking job available:
When the Monkey King heard this, fire leaped up from his heart. ‘So that’s the contempt they have for old Monkey!’ he cried angrily, gnashing his teeth. ‘At the Flower-Fruit Mountain I was honored as king and patriarch. How dare they trick me into coming to look after horses for them, if horse tending is such a menial service, reserved only for the young and lowly? Is such treatment worthy of me? I’m quitting! I’m quitting! I’m leaving right now!’ (149).
Wukong is prideful because his monkeys revere him; he is older and more knowledgeable than his monkeys. However, in comparison to the beings of Heaven, Wukong is young and not as knowledgeable. He fails to see this because of his pride. On the other hand, the Buddha, bodhisattvas, and other sages are good examples of humility and the rewards that accompany them. Consider Tathāgata, who is humble before the Jade Emperor. As a result, the Emperor throws a feast in Tathāgata’s honor, and others come forward to present him with gifts. However, one cannot be humble for the sake of reward; it must not be a means to an end.
The Need for Order and Law Amidst Chaos
In Wukong’s early days of rebellion, he represents chaos in Heaven and on Earth. Wukong appears as a foil to the Jade Emperor, who represents law. As the Jade Emperor issues warrants, summons, and edicts, he is constantly abiding by the rule of the law. In this text, obedience to the rule of law is rewarded, and a chaotic life is punished. From the beginning of the text, there is an emphasis on law and order: “[T]he ethereal and the light rose up to form the four phenomena of the sun, the moon, the stars, and the Heavenly bodies” (99). The need for law is reflected many times over, especially when beings make their pleas to the Jade Emperor to mitigate Wukong’s wrongdoings: “We humbly beg you to send forth your divine army and subdue this monster, to the end that life and death may once more be regulated and the Underworld rendered perpetually secure” (143).
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