Tan hu: A New Tiger Lore Anthology in the Qing Dynasty

To cite this article: LIAN Zelei. (2021). Tan hu: A New Tiger Lore Anthology in the Qing Dynasty. Asia-Pacific Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 1(4), 053-062, DOI: 10.53789/j.1653-0465.2021.0104.008

To link this article: https://doi.org/10.53789/j.1653-0465.2021.0104.008

Abstract: Tigers have long fascinated Chinese minds. People gathered, exchanged, compiled, and took delight in tiger lore from at least the Song Dynasty. This paper draws attention to Tan hu (Talks About Tigers), the last anthology of tiger stories in this long tradition compiled in the early Qing Dynasty. It is based on the long-lasting Chinese literati light literature and sheds new light on the lesser-known author Zhao Biaozhao. It argues that the Tan hu anthology is notably new in four aspects: its inclusion of only new stories; its critical view toward collected stories; its vernacular features; its great sense of humor and satire.

Keywords: tiger story; light literature; literary anthology

LIAN Zelei Number 4 APJHSS.pdf