- Origin
- China
- Source
- I have not found a version of this tale retold either in English
or Chinese yet. The summary of the story is drawn from memory of the
text I read in grade school.
- The Story
- Zhou Chu, the town bully, is challenged by the wise old man to rid
the town of its three beasts. He goes off to kill the Tiger of the
Southern Mountains. Then, he fights and kills the Water Dragon. When he
comes back all proud and ready to go on the third quest. He is told by
the wise old man that the third beast is Zhou Chu himself whom is feared most
and the entire town would like to see destroyed. Zhou Chu finally comes
to the revelation and becomes the most benign character in his town.
- Comments
-
The Water Dragon (instead of Long, it is called Jiao -- more a big worm
than a dignifying dragon) serves as a comparison to Zhou Chu's mean streak.
The impact on the audience when they realize that Zhou Chu is a bigger
thread to his fellow townspeople than the dragon is tremendous.
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Introduction/Index