Chinese myths were primarily a diffuse and fragmentary oral tradition, eventually preserved in writing only in a piecemeal fashion. Many classical texts are unavailable in translation, and the stories have been unknown to Western readers. Anne Birrell here introduces the general reader to a selection of narratives organized by themes and motifs that help set Chinese myths in the context of world mythology.
The contents include:
- Origin and creation myths
- Myths of the flood
- The divine cosmos
- Gender in myth
- Metamorphoses
- Mythic heroes and heroines
- Fabled plants and animals
- Major sources of myth