On a Chinese Screen · Chapter
L: Metempsychosis explained
The narrator encounters an old Chinese gentleman, dressed in traditional silk robes and cap, who appears as a sage from an old painting.
What happens
The narrator encounters an old Chinese gentleman, dressed in traditional silk robes and cap, who appears as a sage from an old painting. However, the old man is engaged in the frustrating task of leading a little black pig along a causeway, and the pig refuses to cooperate. The narrator reflects that in the Tang dynasty, the old man was a philosopher who manipulated facts to suit his theories, and now, through metempsychosis, he is expiating his sins by suffering the stubborn tyranny of the facts he once outraged.
Themes in this chapter
Futility of Western Superiority
The narrator's interpretation of the old man's past life as a philosopher who juggled facts suggests a critique of intellectual arrogance, which parallels Western assumptions of superiority.
Search for Meaning and Identity
The concept of metempsychosis and the old man's expiation through a mundane task reflect a search for meaning and the consequences of past actions.
Characters to notice
- The Stranger
The narrator observes the old gentleman and reflects on his past life as a philosopher.
Key passages
“He was decently though far from richly clad. He had a small round cap of black silk on his head, and on his feet black silk shoes. His robe was pale green of the flowered silk which is made in Chia-ting, and over it he wore a short black jacket.”
The old man was dressed modestly but neatly, wearing a black silk cap, black silk shoes, a pale green flowered silk robe from Chia-ting, and a short black jacket over it.
Describes the old gentleman's attire, indicating his cultural background and modest status.
“He had all the look of one of those sages whom you may see in an old picture seated by a bamboo grove at the foot of a great rocky mountain contemplating the Eternal Way.”
He resembled a traditional sage from ancient paintings, sitting by bamboo at the base of a rocky mountain, meditating on the eternal path.
Highlights the old man's sage-like appearance, contrasting with his current activity.
“Then I knew that in the Tang dynasty the old gentleman had been a philosopher who had juggled with facts, as philosophers will, making them suit the whims which he called his theories; and now, after who knows how many existences, he was expiating his sins in suffering in his turn the stubborn tyranny of the facts which he had outraged.”
The narrator realizes that in the Tang dynasty, the old man was a philosopher who manipulated facts to fit his theories, and now, after many reincarnations, he is atoning for his sins by enduring the stubborn resistance of the facts he once disregarded.
Reveals the narrator's interpretation of the old man's past life and the karmic consequence he now faces.