I thought that the Tao of Pooh was a very good book mainly because it was an easy read. It was short and Hoffman didn’t try to overcomplicate anything. I think that it was a good idea using a classic American figure to try to explain Taoism in the simplest way that would be assessable to anyone one just wants to know the basic concepts behind Taoism.
In our notes from last class when we were talking about the Uncarved Block Professor Rasnic was saying that you may appear dumb or crazy but you’re not your just acting in your original state. This is another reason why Winnie the Pooh is a good example of Taoism because he is simpleminded and he just goes with the flow, like Hoffman says, “Pooh, the Uncarved Block, is able to accomplish what he does because he is simpleminded” (Hoffman, 12).
The section about the Bisy Backson is about people who are not in Wu Wei and who are trying to keep to busy all of the time. The quote by Chuang-tse on page 92 describe a man who didn’t like his footprints so he started running to get away from them but the running just created more footprints, but if he would have stood still there would have been no footprints (Hoffman, 92). I thinks its like when you keep yourself busy you keep finding more and more things for yourself to do to keep you busy, but if you just take time to relax for a little while you realize that you don’t really need to do anything but get as much done as if you where running around, achieving without doing.
When thinking of Taoism as a solution to the American problem I think the achieving without doing is the main solution that Taoism gives to the American Problem. I think a good example of this was early in the book when Pooh, Rabbit, and Piglet were lost and Pooh said that if they stop trying to look for the house then they would find it because Wu Wei will get you there when your supposed to get there not when you want to get there.
Hoff, Benjamin. The Tao of Pooh. New York, NY: Penguin, 1983. Print.
I agreE that Winnie the Pooh is the perfect example as the "uncarved block". He is very simpleminded and clam. He really never makes decisions he just goes with the flow which is the whole idea behind the " uncarved block".
ReplyDeleteYour point about relaxing is exactly what I said. Americans can never truly relax because if we do nothing then we feel as if we are a failure and wasting time.
ReplyDeleteI definitely feel that the story of the characters looking for a house highlights America's impatience. But I believe that it is a modern change in our culture rather than an innate American trait because of the lack of Taoism. For instance, America has some old Taoist-like sayings like "good things come to those who wait."
ReplyDelete