The Reception Of The Tale Of Golden Millet Dream In Medieval Japan

The tale of Golden Millet Dream,originated from A Story in a Pillow,existed since Tang dynasty.It has been evolving over time and influenced a great number of literary works.The tale was also assimilated into Japanese culture as a result of the Sino-Japanese cultural exchanges.during a period when cultural achievements of Song and Yuan dynasty had been imported into Japan.This allowed the emergence of literary works and performing arts with the same theme,such as the Noh masterpiece Kantan.This thesis aims at studying the reception of the tale of Golden Millet Dream in medieval Japan with an emphasis on Kantan.The first chapter surveys the tale of Golden Millet Dream's evolution in China.Chapter 2 then analyzes the dissemination of the tale in Japan during the medieval period,focusing on the Gozan literature developed by Zen monks.Finally,a thorough study on Kantan' s texts and relevant historical materials is conducted in an effort to illustrate the reception of the tale in Japan.The findings of this research would be relevant to studies on the Noh plays with a Chinese setting and the reception of Chinese literature in medieval Japan.Moreover.the thesis would provide a better understanding of the cultural contact and synthesis between China and Japan during the period from 13th to 15th centuries.