Myths and beliefs about cats in pre- and post-modern Japanese society
Keywords:
Myths, Beliefs, Cat, Japanese Society, Late Edo to Early Meiji PeriodAbstract
This article aims 1) to study the myths of pre-modern Japanese society towards cats; 2) to study the story of Japanese cats being reproduced in post-modern Japanese society. The study found that 1) Japanese society has been associated with cats as pets since at least the Heian period. This is evident in ancient literature. 2) The folklore aspect reflects how pre-modern Japanese society ties in with cats as a sacred offering of both good fortune and misfortune. Therefore, it is linked and is reproduced as a fairy tale. 3) The cat's belief in Japanese society has been produced into stories and commercialized, which clearly reflects the influence of Japanese society's beliefs, especially "Maneki Neko"
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