The Useless Tree

Taoism

  • Shadowlands and Redemption

    We watched the movie, Shadowlands, last night.  It is based on the life of C.S. Lewis and his late-in-life love and marriage to Joy Gresham.  It is a tragedy.  He discovers her, or she him; she challenges him fundamentally to… Continue reading

  • Power and Order

    Today the summer program I have been overseeing for the month of July ended.  My students have scattered to the four corners of the country, to return in about a month better prepared, I believe, to begin their four years… Continue reading

  • Why is Glass Hard?

    I saw this story in today’s NYT, about scientists baffled by the nature of glass, and it sparked some Taoist thoughts.      First, I thought: a Taoist might not ask that question.  Glass is hard; it simply is.  As to… Continue reading

  • Satisfied, Fatalisitic China

          The Pew Global Attitudes Project yesterday published its report “The 2008 Pew Global Attitudes Survey in China” (PDF file!).  Some interesting data there.       One noticeable result, which Roland picked up on also, is the high level of satisfaction… Continue reading

  • Tao Te Ching Wordle

    I tried out the new Wordle thing.  Below is a representation of Lin Yutang’s translation of the Tao Te Ching with one slight change: I deleted the word “therefore,” which Lin apparently used quite a bit but which, in my… Continue reading

  • The Definition of Irony

    And while we’re talking about Taoism, can I just mention this line from yesterday’s NYT Sunday Style section, which is referring to “narcissism:” A term that has deep roots in psychoanalytic literature appears to have become a popular descriptor so… Continue reading

  • A Taoist Reading of Chekhov

    On Saturday night my summer students and I took in the Williamstown Theater Festival’s production of Chekhov’s Three Sisters.  It was a very good show.  Performances across the board were strong, and the director effectively drew out the discomforting interweave… Continue reading

  • Enough with the Panda, already!

    Richard Bernstein, in today’s NYT Week in Review section is a bit late to the Kung Fu Panda critique.  I do not often toot my own horn here but I was on this a month ago.  And in the meantime… Continue reading

  • Sometimes a Panda is just a Panda

        I didn’t realize a couple of weeks ago when I saw the anodyne children’s movie Kung Fu Panda that it would create such a stir in China.  The controversy, however, is not so much about orientalism, as I had… Continue reading

  • The Value of Human Life

    Here’s something that both Taoists and Confucians can agree upon: it is foolhardy, and perhaps stupid, to attempt to determine a monetary value of a human life.   This comes to mind today because of this news story: WASHINGTON (AP) —… Continue reading