The Butterfly in the Garden: Utopia and the Feminine in The Story of the Stone

Abstract

Written in the 5th century by the Chinese poet Tao Qian (365-427), Peach Blossom Spring is the most celebrated depiction of utopia in Chinese literature. It has so enchanted the Chinese imagination that its name has become virtually synonymous with utopia itself. The work consists of two parts: a prose preface and a poem, both telling the story of the discovery and disappearance of Peach Blossom Spring. But the prose version, perhaps owing to its more tangible dramatic power, is what comes more readily to mind when a Chinese thinks of utopia.