[Fic] Chinese mythology: Worlds Away
Jan. 2nd, 2010 07:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
springgreenSpoilers: None
Disclaimer: I didn't invent Chang E, and I seriously doubt anyone can copyright her...
Summary: They say I stole the elixir from my husband, but how could a dry pill from the Queen Mother of the West ever appeal to one who has had the ambrosia of mangoes and durian and lychee?
Notes: Written forbravecows for Yuletide 2009
Read Worlds Away
Source information
I don't know the exact details of the Chang E story; checking Wikipedia, there seem to be several variants. The one I always grew up with was the one in which she was married to the archer Hou Yi and ate the elixer meant for her and her husband out of greed and ended up floating to the moon. The versions I've heard usually make Chang E out to be the flawed one who ends up punished for her greed, albeit inadvertantly. And, as with many things I grew up with, I don't remember when I first heard it or even how.
Commentary
I read afrai's prompt back when she posted her Dear Santa letter, and I thought it was awesome to read Chang E as a member of the Chinese diaspora. As afrai put it, "Also it occurs to me that Chang E could be seen as part of the Chinese diaspora, since it's hard to imagine how much more overseas Chinese you could get than, you know, living on the moon!" And since I was in Xi'an with limited internet access during Yuletide Madness, I couldn't get to any of the Giant Spreadsheets of Yuletide requests made both for Dark Agenda and for the general archive. So I went to this request, because I also wanted to write something very Chinese, given the entire steeped-in-ancient-history Xi'an trip.
This is a sort-of companion to my The Journey West: another mythical personage representing both him/herself and a group of people at the same time, another story of immigration, only this time more personal and less vast in scope, this time specifically written with the SEAsian Chinese diaspora first finding a home in SEAsia, then migrating to Western countries. I very much hope that I did not mess up horrifically, and apologize in advance for any mistakes in the story.
I am kind of surprised no one guessed this one was me, since I feel like it screams my name!
Disclaimer: I didn't invent Chang E, and I seriously doubt anyone can copyright her...
Summary: They say I stole the elixir from my husband, but how could a dry pill from the Queen Mother of the West ever appeal to one who has had the ambrosia of mangoes and durian and lychee?
Notes: Written for
bravecows for Yuletide 2009Read Worlds Away
Source information
I don't know the exact details of the Chang E story; checking Wikipedia, there seem to be several variants. The one I always grew up with was the one in which she was married to the archer Hou Yi and ate the elixer meant for her and her husband out of greed and ended up floating to the moon. The versions I've heard usually make Chang E out to be the flawed one who ends up punished for her greed, albeit inadvertantly. And, as with many things I grew up with, I don't remember when I first heard it or even how.
Commentary
I read afrai's prompt back when she posted her Dear Santa letter, and I thought it was awesome to read Chang E as a member of the Chinese diaspora. As afrai put it, "Also it occurs to me that Chang E could be seen as part of the Chinese diaspora, since it's hard to imagine how much more overseas Chinese you could get than, you know, living on the moon!" And since I was in Xi'an with limited internet access during Yuletide Madness, I couldn't get to any of the Giant Spreadsheets of Yuletide requests made both for Dark Agenda and for the general archive. So I went to this request, because I also wanted to write something very Chinese, given the entire steeped-in-ancient-history Xi'an trip.
This is a sort-of companion to my The Journey West: another mythical personage representing both him/herself and a group of people at the same time, another story of immigration, only this time more personal and less vast in scope, this time specifically written with the SEAsian Chinese diaspora first finding a home in SEAsia, then migrating to Western countries. I very much hope that I did not mess up horrifically, and apologize in advance for any mistakes in the story.
I am kind of surprised no one guessed this one was me, since I feel like it screams my name!