In a dispatch from my brother, who lives in China:
I was reading your essay on Sisyphus and it occurred to me that the greatest mythological hero in China, Sun Wu Kong - The Monkey King, was also a fabulous trickster and was ultimately punished by the gods for pushing it too far. Parallels ...
The trickster is among the most recognizable common characters through world mythology. It doesn't surprise me that human beings tell similar stories from culture to culture-- we are all human, after all. The differences are what interest me most. In details, small things and subtleties we find what really makes humans human.
Jon Marc is the trickster of our family, famous also for his ability to memorize fast-food commercial jingles from the seventies. "Hold the pickle, hold the lettuce, special orders don't upset us..."
Anyone interested in contributing a good link to a Sun Wu Kong website, please do. I will not advertise my ignorance by playing pot luck with the reliable Internet!
