Assignment
o The text warns that when one hoards possessions, one must guard them. What message is the text trying to communicate regarding the problems that follow when "gold and jade fill the hall"?
o How does the way in which the Tao nourishes and presides over things set a standard for action not just in individual life, but also social and political life?
o Why does the text suggest that favor and public acclaim are actually as dangerous as disgrace?
o Does the text suggest that the rules of benevolence and righteousness (and the expectations of ancestor worship and filial piety) that were emphasized by Confucianism are expressive of the essence of the Tao, or an alternative ordering principle that emerges in its absence?
o What is the relation between humans, earth, heaven, and the Tao?
o How is wei-wu-wei evident?
o Do those who are in alignment with the Tao use force, covet arms (weapons), or take violence (and war) lightly?
o Do those who embody the Tao have to keep busy constantly?
o What do the contraries (binaries) contribute to the Tao?
o In what way does the text refer to the Tao as a first cause of things?
o What overcomes the other: the soft or the hard?
o What should we value more: life or wealth?
o What is the relation between ambition and contentment?
o Is the Tao easy to hard for people to find and practice?
o Does the person who speaks endlessly about the Tao know it? If so, why? If not, what does the person who knows the Tao do?
o Does the proliferation of rules tend to make people better or worse?
o How is governing a state like cooking a small fish?
o What practical advice is offered? And how could this advice, if taken to heart, benefit you as a student or in your life generally?
o What practical advice is offered? And how could this advice, if taken to heart, benefit you as a student or in your life generally?
o Why does the text suggest that the individual who wants to lead should subordinate him or herself (e.g., one who wants to go high should go low)? How does this relate later to the analogy of the bow?
o What does the text identify as the three precious things? What does the text suggest happens if we do not understand things right, and do not fear what we ought to fear?
o What is true of the sage (the wise person)?
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
o The answer should be typed, using Times New Roman font (size 12), double spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides.
o The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
o Also include a reference page. The Citations and references must follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.