Traditional Literature Motifs
Reward the Good, Punish the Bad:
Karmic Justice
Many East Asian traditional tales present a Utopian justice system unfortunately nonexistent in real-life: people get what they deserve. Korean, Chinese, and Japanese folktales hint at a justice system that infallibly rewards the good and punishes the wicked. Founded in the Buddhist religion of India, karma is the idea that if one leads a respectable life, he will be rewarded in the afterlife and if one does not, he will be appropriately penalized in the next life. In its Western adaptation and usage, the concept of karma has been generalized to an everyday cause and effect, not one confined to a final judgment upon death. And Asian folklore assumes that hopeful logic in many of its traditional tales, formulating their conclusions on the belief that the noble and pure with be aptly blessed for such behavior and the cruel and malevolent will be held responsible for their sins. The two characters most commonly paired to portray this contrast of human nature are the "greedy" and the "kind."
Japan
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Japan
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Korea
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China
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