Abstract
"Kikai gisenden" is the only extant Japanese collection of pseudo-biography written in classical Chinese, which includes biographies for everyday utensils in the light of "viewing history as play" and "regarding object as man." These pseudo-biographies focus on the features of the utensils in narrative, while pointing to the nature of "recluse" and "immortality" of the characters. These aims in the pseudo-biographies both exhibit the influence from the biographical writing of recluses and immortal beings in Chinese tradition and manifest Japanese elements in its narrative through the use of Japanese imageries and words. Kikai gisenden provides an important text for the study of East Asian pseudo-biography literature as well as the circulation of this genre in the Sinographic sphere.
First Page
26
Last Page
35
Recommended Citation
Bian, Dongbo. 2021. "Playfulness and Parody: The Narrative Tension in Japanese Collection of Pseudo-Biography Kikai gisenden." Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art 41, (1): pp.26-35. https://tsla.researchcommons.org/journal/vol41/iss1/33
