Fox Tales in Konjyakumonogatarisyuu and Chinese Literature

Taking Konjyakumonogatarisyuu as a paradigm of ancient Japanese literature, this thesis will compare and contrast the characteristics of the role, of the fox, as seen in the ancient literature of China and Japan. Having been influenced by Chinese literature such as Shan Hai Jing ("Collection of the Mountains and Seas”) and Yiwen Leiju ("Collection of Literature Arranged by Categories"), the fox in Rikkokushi such as Nihonnshokki is often portrayed as having the ability to foretell good and bad fortune. During the Heian period, the fox starts to take on a wider variety of roles in Monogatari and Setsuwa literature than in Rikkokushi in the precious period of time, due to the further influence of ancient Chinese sources such as Buddhist parables. Konjyakumonogatarisyuu, a representative work of Setsuwa literature, contains 31 stories in total concerning the fox, 14 of which have a more comprehensive description of it. This thesis will focus on the 14 stories in order to examine how the role of fox in ancient Chinese literature correlates with their counterpart in ancient Japanese literature.