Children's Hero Stories

A long colloquial novel from the Qing Dynasty in China. It consists of 40 episodes. It was written by the Manchu bannerman Fei Mo Wenkang during the Daoguang period (1821-50) in opposition to Dream of the Red Chamber. The protagonist Prince An sets out on a journey to rescue his father who has been framed for a crime, and is saved by a chivalrous woman, Thirteen Sister (actually He Yufeng), when he is nearly killed by a robber. Later, the prince rescues his father, marries Zhang Jinfeng and He Yufeng, who were also saved by Thirteen Sister, and takes filial piety to his parents, passes the imperial examination, and rises in social status. It is a clichéd work both ideologically and technically. However, the author's good intentions are overflowing throughout the work, and the light and humorous narration in pure Beijing dialect makes it a unique chivalrous novel. Taijun Takeda's Thirteen Sisters is based on this novel.

[Yutaka Fujita]

"Translated by Shosuke Tatsuma, "Chinese Classical Literature Series 47: Heroic Tales of Children and Girls" (Heibonsha, 1971)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

中国、清(しん)代の口語長編小説。全40回。道光年間（1821～50）、満州旗人(きじん)の費莫文康(ひばくぶんこう)が『紅楼夢(こうろうむ)』に対抗して執筆したもので、主人公安公子が罪に陥れられた父の救出のために旅に出て、強盗に危うく命をとられそうになったところを侠女(きょうじょ)十三妹(シイサンメイ)（実は何玉鳳(かぎょくほう)）に助けられ、のちに公子は父を救出して、自分とともに十三妹に助けられた張金鳳(ちょうきんぽう)と何玉鳳の2人を妻とし、父母に孝養を尽くし、科挙に合格して立身出世する筋で、思想的にも技巧的にも陳腐な作となっている。ただ作者の善意が全編にあふれ、純粋な北京(ペキン)語の軽妙でユーモラスな叙述によって、特異な侠義小説となっている。武田泰淳(たいじゅん)の『十三妹』はこの小説に基づく。

［藤田祐賢］

『立間祥介訳『中国古典文学大系47　児女英雄伝』（1971・平凡社）』

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