Tao te ching
TAO TE CHING: A Literary Analysis Essay The book Tao Te Ching by Lao Tsu, and translated by Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English, is a book about Lao Tsu’s feelings on life and taoism. Some 2,600 years ago, Lao Tsu was the keeper of the imperial archives at loyang in the province of Honan in the sixth century B.C. and an older contemporary of Confucius. His life’s teachings consisted of “The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao”. According to chinese legend, he was riding off to die in the desert because he was sick of how men were on this earth and sick of how they acted, but was persuaded by a northwestern China gatekeeper to write down his teaching for prosperity. In the Tao Te Ching, it can be depicted from its writings that there is a character of a protagonist and thus, also that of an antagonist. The protagonist is a sage, a wise (often thought of as an immortal) man, and the antagonist is played by that of ordinary men. In writing these 81 chapters, Lao Tsu was writing it for future generations and also for the men of the world. His intentions and motives for writing it was to improve the hearts of men by living and experiencing the Tao. Although there is no real plot elements, or events, e
Chapter eight depicts an analogy of how great good is like unto water. Water flows naturally and sustains life without a conscious striving and is found in places that even some desiring men will reject. It is sometimes hard to find, yet other times abundant and flowing. Chapter nine on the other hand speaks of avoiding extremes. If ones cup is overflowing, it is hard to hold. Gold and jade are easier to protect if collected in moderation. He who seeks titles invites his own downfall. One should not be too passionate about something, for if he is, it invites misfortune. ach of the 81 chapters tells a perspective of how to live. There is no chronological order of these chapters, neither do they have any plot value, but they are arranged in an order that can be sequenced. Chapter thirteen comes to the point that to live the way of the sage, you must not be like the ordinary man. The ordinary man seeks honor, not dishonor; abominates failure, while cherishing success; lovest life yet fearest death. A sage does not contend with the vain complexities of the world, he loves the world, therefore he is unmoved. He acts in humility being neither moved nor moving, therefore he can be trusted to care for all things. There are 81 chapters in the book and each chapter is a poem that focuses
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Approximate Word count = 892
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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