Publisher's Synopsis
"This book examines the interconnection between the idea of monstrosity and the emergence of Chinese cultural identity since the Song dynasty. Chinese vernacular literature matured during the Southern Song period and coincided with society's growing apprehension of foreignness. As society's perception of the other fluctuated between acceptance and abhorrence following the Mongolian conquest of the Middle Kingdom and the subsequent political desire to return to a fixation with the concept of Han during the Ming dynasty, the idea of monstrosity was adopted by these works as a logical vessel for contemplating the question of identity. Unlike other forms of written work in China, vernacular literature developed out of the necessity to cater to the masses. As such, they provide a unique window to understand society's reaction to the cultural and political milieu of the time. By resituating the production of these works within this cultural b
