Project Gutenberg
2005-07-11
Public domain in the USA.
288
Hearn, Lafcadio
1850
1904
Koizumi, Yakumo
Hearn, Patrick Lafcadio
Xiaoquan, Bayun
Some Chinese Ghosts
Reading ease score: 61.3 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read.
The soul of the great bell -- The story of Ming-Y -- The legend of Tchi-Niu -- The return of Yen-Tchin-King -- The tradition of the tea-plant -- The tale of the porcelain-god -- Notes.
Produced by Bethanne M. Simms, Louise Pryor and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
"Some Chinese Ghosts" by Lafcadio Hearn is a collection of short stories written in the late 19th century. The book explores a variety of supernatural tales and legends from Chinese folklore, showcasing ghostly encounters and the mystical elements of Chinese culture. Through richly descriptive prose, Hearn invites readers into a world where the ordinary intersects with the extraordinary, blending themes of beauty, tragedy, and the ethereal. The opening of the book features a preface that sets the tone for the stories to come, as Hearn explains his fascination with the "weird beauty" of Chinese legends. The first tale, "The Soul of the Great Bell," introduces the character Kouan-Yu, a mandarin tasked with creating a powerful bell for the emperor, Yong-Lo. However, after two unsuccessful attempts to cast the bell, Kouan-Yu faces the threat of execution. His daughter, Ko-Ngai, in a bid to save her father, selflessly jumps into the molten metal to ensure the bell's success. This act of love transforms her essence into the bell, which subsequently tolls with a haunting beauty, echoing her name and story throughout the ages. The beginning not only captivates with its lyrical storytelling but also foreshadows the deep emotional and moral themes that will permeate the rest of the collection. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
en
Legends -- China
China -- Social life and customs -- Fiction
PS
Text
Browsing: Culture/Civilization/Society
Browsing: Literature
Browsing: Fiction
169400
169448
2024-10-07T09:30:29.294956
2023-09-07T10:15:37.512104
text/html
text/html
171184
2020-12-12T02:10:10
text/html; charset=iso-8859-1
133303
2020-12-12T02:10:10
text/html; charset=iso-8859-1
application/zip
196957
2024-10-07T09:30:35.521919
application/epub+zip
198103
2024-10-07T09:30:31.547962
application/epub+zip
133309
2024-10-07T09:30:30.095939
application/epub+zip
360792
2024-10-07T09:30:38.191935
application/x-mobipocket-ebook
343916
2024-10-07T09:30:34.482957
application/x-mobipocket-ebook
219710
2022-09-08T04:21:01.207386
application/x-mobipocket-ebook
151319
151215
2024-10-07T09:30:28.744943
2023-09-07T10:15:37.110111
text/plain; charset=us-ascii
text/plain
151111
2020-12-12T02:10:10
text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
59648
2020-12-12T02:10:10
text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
application/zip
151102
2020-12-12T02:10:10
text/plain; charset=us-ascii
59537
2020-12-12T02:10:10
text/plain; charset=us-ascii
application/zip
22184
2024-10-07T09:30:38.324897
application/rdf+xml
13547
2024-10-07T09:30:30.670958
image/jpeg
3460
2024-10-07T09:30:30.381934
image/jpeg
199981
2024-10-07T09:30:29.334945
application/octet-stream
application/zip
Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at
https://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog
en.wikipedia