The Journey to the West: Volume I

Many of the humans, gods, and monsters in the novel all strive for self-improvement. Because Buddhists believe in reincarnation, behavior during one’s lifetime influences what kind of life one will be born into next. When the Monkey King lives among people for the first time, “He saw, however, that the people of the world were all seekers after profit and fame; there was not one who showed concern for his appointed end” (109). While this is predominantly a reference to mortality, it also shows that people were greedy and fame-obsessed before the pilgrim’s quest for dharma. 

Wukong himself is desperate for fame. When the pupils studying with Patriarch ask Wukong to show off, Wukong is eager to do so, but Patriarch reprimands him: “I ask what sort of exhibition you were putting on, changing into a pine tree? This ability you now possess, is it just for showing off to people?” (124). However, there is the possibility for redemption, even for characters like Wukong who have committed many atrocities: “When the time of his chastisement was fulfilled, they were told, someone would be coming to deliver him” (199). The text itself serves as an instructive tool for demonstrating which behaviors are acceptable and which are not.