In its long and glorious history, China has made great contributions in the fields of philosophy, literature, history, science, and the arts. Although poetry has always been regarded by the Chinese as their greatest literary achievement, it is from Chinese tales–myths, fables, fantasies, legends, anecdotes, or stories of other types–that we can learn most about Chinese people and their customs. Since some of these tales were popular with common people, high-minded scholars in the past looked upon them as trivial, not paying much attention to them. Not until the early twentieth century did an upsurge of interest begin. Thereafter many serious studies of Chinese tales have been made by scholars in China and abroad.

It is easy to see that most of the tales that have come down to the present day are stories of morality. This is not surprising, since most of the tales have been greatly influenced by Confucianism, which has dominated Chinese society for more than two thousand years.

Originally an ethical philosophy based on the central idea of humanity, or “human-heartedness,” as taught by Confucius (551-479 B.C.), Confucianism cannot be ignored when discussing Chinese culture.