Tale of the Bamboo Cutter

After reading a translation of Tale of the Bamboo Cutter by Donald Keene, one is surprised by claims that this is an early work of science fiction. Sure, the supernatural being of beauty is from the Moon who returns to her celestial home through a flying chariot, but there are very few elements of science fiction in the text. If anything, it is more akin to fantastic fairy tale with elements of humor. Indeed, it was hard not to think of Lucian here, whose satirical work also included fantastic accounts of a war between the people of the Sun and the Moon. Lucian, on the other hand, made war in space a key part of the plot. Here, in the case of this Japanese narrative, the reader receives descriptions of people of the Moon as ageless, living in bliss, and to have a Palace, connoting a kingdom or empire. We never learn the nature of Kaguya's sin which led to her being sent to our planet, so the reason for this mysterious being's presence is left a mystery.

Much of the text's appeal can be found in its humor. Indeed, the impossible tasks Kaguyahime assigns to her suitors and the attempts by the men to achieve said tasks are very amusing as they involve various acts of subterfuge, wonder,  adventure at sea (and a dragon) and exoticism (invocations of India and China). Indeed, how can one not laugh at the plight of the man who grabbed bird feces, thinking it was the charm of the swallow? Or the man whose jeweled branch was the work of artisans he did not pay? Another sense of wonder in the tale lies is due to Kaguya's rejection of social conventions by refusing to marry, leading to her even rejecting the Emperor. Beauty as unattainable seems to be a key theme of the stale. Since specific individuals of the Heian court are named, perhaps it was also intended to be a satire of sorts. Nonetheless, it lacks the over the top satirical feel of Lucian's "science fiction" story and is more rooted in the fairy tale.