{"product_id":"monkey-by-wu-cheng-en","title":"Monkey By Wu Cheng’en","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublished: 27\/01\/2005\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"scope_book_description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlso known as \u003ci\u003eJourney to the West\u003c\/i\u003e, Wu Ch'êng-ên's \u003ci\u003eMonkey\u003c\/i\u003e is one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature, translated by Arthur Waley in Penguin Classics.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eMonkey\u003c\/i\u003e depicts the adventures of Prince Tripitaka, a young Buddhist priest on a dangerous pilgrimage to India to retrieve sacred scriptures accompanied by his three unruly disciples: the greedy pig creature Pipsy, the river monster Sandy - and Monkey. Hatched from a stone egg and given the secrets of heaven and earth, the irrepressible trickster Monkey can ride on the clouds, become invisible and transform into other shapes - skills that prove very useful when the four travellers come up against the dragons, bandits, demons and evil wizards that threaten to prevent them in their quest. Wu Ch'êng-ên wrote \u003ci\u003eMonkey\u003c\/i\u003e in the mid-sixteenth century, adding his own distinctive style to an ancient Chinese legend, and in so doing created a dazzling combination of nonsense with profundity, slapstick comedy with spiritual wisdom.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eArthur Waley's humorous and energetic translation is accompanied by an introduction discussing the story's background in history and legend, its elements of anti-bureaucratic satire and the allegorical nature of its characters\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eVery little is known about Wu Ch'êng-ên (c.1505-80) although he is believed to have held the post of District Magistrate for a time. He had a reputation as a good poet but only a few rather commonplace verses of his survive in an anthology of Ming poetry and in a local gazetteer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you enjoyed \u003ci\u003eMonkey, \u003c\/i\u003eyou might like Confucius's \u003ci\u003eThe Analects, \u003c\/i\u003ealso available in Penguin Modern Classics.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-testid=\"publisher-information\" class=\"pdp-spec\"\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003ePublisher information\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublisher: \u003cspan\u003ePenguin Books Ltd\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eISBN: \u003cspan\u003e9780140441116\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eNumber of pages: \u003cspan\u003e352\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eDimensions: \u003cspan\u003e198 x 128 x 21 mm\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eWeight: \u003cspan\u003e274 g\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLanguage: \u003cspan\u003eEnglish (Language of text), Chinese (Original language of a translated text)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Starlight Library","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":67577210470713,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"IQD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0951\/4624\/6457\/files\/81zNCzd7BaL._SL1500.jpg?v=1790805579","url":"https:\/\/starlightlibrary.shop\/products\/monkey-by-wu-cheng-en","provider":"Starlight Library","version":"1.0","type":"link"}