일본 설화 속의 토끼담 연구

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to arrange the type and feature of Rabbit Tales in Japan. First of all, the type of Rabbit Tales is divided into two types like <Trickster> type and <Moon rabbit> type. The <Trickster> type can be classified with the primary 'Self-centered type' and secondary 'Decentralized type' again. As to the feature of 'Self-centered type', the rabbit deceives the opposite thoroughly in order to achieve its own purpose. In connection with the feature of 'Decentralized type', the rabbit plays a role in the judge who punishes the assailant from the victim's shoes contrary to the selfish figure as shown in the 'Self-centered type', and there are a lot of recorded tales. This study was to deduct that the relationship between two Tricksters had developed from 'Self-centered type' to 'Decentralized type' based on the 'Theory of Child Development' by Piaget. Accordingly, it is considered as the tales of 'Self-centered type' are original stories, and the tales of 'Decentralized type' are moral stories adding sense of justice written in future ages. The <Moon rabbit> type has contents that the rabbits are living on the moon, and it was originated from the Buddhist tales that the Sakra devanam Indra made the rabbits live in the moon forever as the rabbit in the country called India had behaved the Bodhisattva-practice. In addition, the image of Moon rabbit which presented the eternal life like perpetual youth because the rabbits were always sanctified in the Taoism in China. Since then, this study was to deduct that it affected Korea and Japan with the ancestral Buddhist tales, and furthermore, it was considered as the image of Moon rabbit was completed in the tales because the rabbits were revered as mountain spirit in the folk beliefs.