Variation on a Theme: Journey to the West and the Voice of Chinese Art

This study discusses the historical progression of adaptation of the story of Journey to the West, the 1592 novel by Wu Cheng’en and the folklore, stories, and oral tradition out of which it was born. This study primarily focuses on the characterization of the character, the Monkey King Sun Wukong, analyzing the ways and reasons Chinese artists and writers adapted this story. This thesis proposes that these adaptations served to express the respective ideas of these artists in order to promote and share them with others. This study introduces and discusses selected art forms, namely painting and carving, shadow puppetry, opera, and animation, analyzing the manner in which the Monkey King has played a role in being the voice of Chinese artists. This study posits that during various periods, the Monkey King has been used as a conversation catalyst between these art forms, creating an artistic thread of continuity and change. Ultimately, this study discusses the history of Journey to the West adaptations, focusing on the relationship of inheritance and feedback between these disparate media. At various stages in China’s history, artists and writers have played a role in domestic conversations on politics and religion as well as international conversations of diplomacy and soft power relations. The words and images used in this process have proven time and time again to be those from Journey to the West. This study outlines these connections to show how Journey to the West has been used to speak with others and the self in Chinese history.