starkclassroom© THE TAO OF POOH
By: Benjamin Hoff
End of Novel Exam
DIRECTIONS: Now that you have completed reading the Tao of Pooh, it is time to explore the vast metaphoric aspects of the novel. Please select 2 of the following prompts to complete. Remember that this is the novel’s exit exam; therefore please be sure that all of your responses are written in a formal tone with proper grammatical construction. Submissions may be either typed or handwritten. This exam is due on: Friday January 10, 2014. PROMPTS: 1. “To K’ung Fu-­‐tse, life seemed rather sour. He believed that the present was out of step with the past, and that the government of man on earth was out of harmony with the Way of Heaven, the government of the universe.” Using the passage above from page 3, elaborate on a specific aspect of modern society in which man is “out of step with the past”. To earn full credit, you must describe [A] what is it is that is out of “step”, [B] how this “issue” is affecting our modern society and [C] what, if anything, can be done to help realign this “issue” with the Way of Heaven. 2. Thinking about the unconventional beauty of an “Uncarved Block”, what is something that you find beauty in that others may not? [A] Present an image of that object (photograph, drawing, etc…) and in the style of the Tao, [B] describe how that object defies conventional beauty. 3. In the third chapter, Spelling Tuesday, the narrator discusses the differences between “Knowledge and Experience”. If you had to choose to live the rest of your life with either knowledge or experience, [A] which would you choose? [B] What would the benefits of your choice be? [C] What would the drawbacks be? 4. Hoff describes the Busy Backson as confusing “exercise with work. He works when he works, works when he exercises, and more often than not, works when he plays. Work, work, work. All work and no play…”. [A] Are you a Busy Backson? [B] Is America a Busy Backson? [C] Is being a Busy Backson negative? [D] Are there benefits to being a Busy Backson? 5. On page 101, the narrator and Pooh share dialog in which Pooh’s actions, or lack there of, are discussed. As we discussed in class, the term “important” is subjective. [A] Describe a time in your life when you believed something to be especially important, even though someone close to you did not. [B] How did that make you feel? [C] Do you still value that particular incident with the same level of importance? 6. The Tao of Pooh is written in an openly bias Taoist point of view. Identify 3 examples from the novel in which the character of the Christian faith is directly called into question. Meaning = [A1] find, [A2] quote and [A3] describe 3 examples from the novel in which the Christian religion is called out as bad and/or harmful to the universe. 7. Given that Taoism believes, “Things Are What They Are”, [A] do you believe that the United States could be what it is today if the founding father’s were Taoist rather than Christians? [B] How might our history/society be the same or different?