World literature lesson 3 - Essay Example

World Literature Lesson No. 3 Answers Match the terms in Column I with the s inColumn II. Maxim -- C. concise statement of rule of conduct or behavior Paradox -- B. a seeming contradiction that expresses an actual truth Personification -- A. figure of speech that gives human characteristics to something that is not human Repetition -- D. deliberately repeated words or phrases for unity and rhythm Hymn -- E. lyric poem addressed to a divine being (2) A haiku is a short, three-line poem. (3) Identify the literary element illustrated in the following sentence: The silky petals float silently to the musty earth below. personification (4) Unlike some religions, Hinduism has no written set of rules. (5) What accomplishment made it possible for the Chinese to begin their lengthy literary tradition? They developed a unique alphabet. (6) According to the Analects, how is a moral ruler like the polestar? Both provide guidance. (7) Which of the following statements from the Analects does NOT contain a maxim? “Yu, shall I teach you what knowledge is?” (8) Judging from her writing, Sei Shonagon is a woman who appreciates the small pleasures of life. (9) What does the haiku poem, We cover fragile bones, suggest about the relationship between humankind and nature? Human beings are fragile, but nature lasts forever. (10) Many translated haikus differ from their original Japanese versions in that the translations do not add up to 17 syllables. (11) The hymn Night is dedicated to the goddess of night. (12) The poet in What Plant Is Not Faded? Opens his song with questions. (13) Which of the following lines from Peonies contains an example of personification? “The perfumed carriages run home.” (14) Which of the following sentences best illustrates Krishna’s main purpose in Philosophy and Spiritual Discipline? “Never have I not existed, / nor you, nor these kings” (15) One difficulty in translating Japanese poetry into English is the same haiku can be translated in numerous ways. (16) The Lost Horse teaches the paradoxical idea that problems always turn into blessings. (17) All the following are techniques used by the author of Night EXCEPT analogy. (18) Which of Krishna’s teachings is a paradox? No person ever dies. (19) Which of these art forms is meant to suggest as much as possible in the fewest possible words? haiku (20) Zen parables were originally used to teach aspiring monks about Buddhism. (21) Which of the following best represents Laotzu’s philosophy? “The Master sees things as they are, without trying to control them.” (22) The line “This man is no thief as far as I am concerned. I gave him the money and he thanked me for it” came from a Zen parable. (23) The quote “As a man discards worn-out clothes to put on new ones and different ones, so the embodied self discards its worn-out bodies to take on other new ones” best represents which culture’s religious tradition? Indian (24) Which of the following statements is NOT true of The Mice That Set Elephants Free? It contains epigrams. (25) In the Ramayana, the foe Ravana is vulnerable to weapons only in his heart. (26) The Book of Songs is a collection of the earliest poems in Chinese history. (27) The Taoist Anecdotes are alike because they all teach a lesson about human behavior. (28) Maxims pertain to a general statement of principle which embodies sound or reasonable truth and may be expressed as proverbs that serve to teach men to seek wisdom so that conduct or actions may guided accordingly. Two compelling maxims from the Analects that are still relevant today are: “Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart.” -- Once we have decided to do something after making a tough choice for instance, we ought to be sure to take or carry it out with a sold out passion. The passage calls for us to give or do what we find in our hearts to do for if we have it otherwise, there can be no sense of fulfillment. We can only be truly happy if we profess according to the dictates of the heart wherever we go and whatever we do. “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do.” – By experience, we claim that success is indeed counted sweetest when something is obtained the hard way. Often people tend to get bored at experiencing a series of triumphs in the absence of struggles as if growth or change is not felt to make a difference unlike when there exists points of defeat. We are challenged every time we fall, thinking that a move or action taken could have been done better and it is this excitement to improve ourselves that keeps us alive makes us feel deserving of glory. (29) As the hymn “Night” initiates with “With all her eyes the Goddess Night looks forth approaching many a spot: She hath put all her glories on”, it means to depict the magnificent power of the Night goddess residing in the sense of sight which sees and examines no matter how minute details from afar could get. That is to say, the goddess is praised for having remarkably sensitive eyes and by “Immortal .. She conquers darkness with her light”, the song desires for each intent listener to understand that the goddess, unlike human beings, lives for eternity and that no darkness is greater than the brightness of the light she is able to shed. “Darkness” symbolizes evil power and by having it vanished through the “Dawn”, a sister to the goddess Night, implies that the light takes the representation of the good or the righteous. The deity is asked for moral guidance in pleading “So favour us this night, O thou whose pathways we have visited” in which simile is utilized to compare pathways to bird’s nest. (30) Haiku (by Basho) An old silent pond... A frog jumps into the pond, splash! Silence again. The 5-7-5 structure of the poem depicts a picture of serenity in which the observer’s point of view recognizes freedom from any sort of emotional bewilderment. The pond seemingly characterizes a person whose depth of wisdom or constant meditative state of well-being is not easily stirred by disturbances. Both the frog and the splash it creates represent pleasant distractions yet the pond, like a calm and wise person who remains true to oneself, returns to the silent nature it is. A Tanka (by Gerard John Conforti) This cold winter night the snow clings to the tree boughs in the pale moonlight the kisses of your soft lips warm this aching heart of mine G.J. Conforti’s tanka on wintry evening suggests a tone of sadness or loneliness. Such emotion of desperate yearning is evoked by the poet’s choice of imagery and season. By words ‘cold’, ‘clings’, and ‘pale moonlight’, he intends for the reader to feel the lack of warmth due to the absence of a lover. Then it is eventually remedied with the recollection of ‘the kisses’ of her ‘soft lips’ which altogether signify heat to combat the ‘cold’ state of being alone. Haiku (by Natsume Soseki) Over the wintry forest, winds howl in  rage with no leaves to blow. In the same manner, N. Soseki’s haiku uses winter setting for a reader to imagine a dark blue forest heavy with snow. With this scenery, a reader may be swayed between fright and the thought of getting over an obstacle for it would be hard to leave such encounter in reality. Soseki appears to make the poetic elements function so as to affect the audience with a more physical and literal sense of the nature presented. (31) In “Muddy Road”, differences in the way by which monks respond to spiritual law are brought to light. Just when people think that monks are known to have dwelt or shared the same temple together, this koan proves otherwise. Tanzan and Ekido each have their own approach despite adherence to a common tradition of Zen Buddhism. Tanzan is first to exhibit an unexpected behavior of carrying the lovely girl over the mud. Though Ekido remains silent, this does not necessarily indicate an agreement with Tanzan’s course of action. This, however, teaches a reader firsthand that monks like them, to the point of view of Tanzan at least, must prioritize helping others in crisis regardless whether the incident puts one to peril physically or spiritually. The second unexpected behavior is revealed as Ekido breaks his silence upon reaching the temple. His attempt to reprimand Tanzan goes in vain as the latter replies with “I left the girl there” … “Are you still carrying her?” That is to imply that though he has helped the girl, in the process, he makes reservation for himself as a monk and takes such action only to a certain extent so he would not fall into temptation. To Ekido’s surprise, Tanzan understands the thoughts of the other monk and finally reacts to make him realize that Tanzan has been underestimated as Ekido seems to “carry” or “suppose all along” that his fellow monk is falling short when actually he keeps watch of himself. (32) Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that “It is not born, it does not die; having been, it will never not be; unborn, enduring, constant, and primordial, it is not killed when the body is killed”. Apparently, the contradictions in the phrases “it will never not be” and “it is not killed when the body is killed” are in reference to the belief of reincarnation. The paradoxical statement points out to the truth of the soul, as an entity distinct from the body. Having existed in a non-physical form, the body takes on the metaphor of clothes which it wears on passing another reincarnation process that occurs in cycle. Another statement notable of its paradox in the Philosophy and Spiritual Discipline of the Bhagavad-Gita resides in the passage “rarely someone sees it, rarely another speaks it, rarely anyone hears it – even hearing it, no one really knows it.” This particularly aims to educate the reader of the concept behind the God of creation where the Creator of the world is shrouded in mystery and mysticism that he cannot be spoken of plainly nor be grasped even with the finest intelligence of man. Being part of ancient Eastern philosophies, it establishes a primary assumption that the foundation on which the human world originated was ‘silence’.   Read More