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In the Winnie-the-Pooh books, Eeyore is a miserable, pessimistic donkey who spends his time wallowing around his riverbank, worrying and complaining. The other characters constantly look out for him and try to brighten his mood, but he tends to question their motives and express skepticism about their plans. As a result, he doesn’t recognize or appreciate the effort they actually put into helping him. His pessimism is so extreme that it’s often ridiculous and darkly humorous—for instance, he once complains that nobody cares enough about him to knock over his house. For Hoff, Eeyore shows why Taoists shouldn’t have a sour mood. In other words, people can’t be wise, achieve happiness, or grow as individuals unless—like Pooh—they learn to accept the world, embrace their own weaknesses, and affirm the value and beauty in life.
Eeyore Quotes in The Tao of Pooh
The The Tao of Pooh quotes below are all either spoken by Eeyore or refer to Eeyore. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
The Pooh Way
Quotes
It’s not the Clever Mind that’s responsible when things work out. It’s the mind that sees what’s in front of it, and follows the nature of things.
When you work with Wu Wei, you put the round peg in the round hole and the square peg in the square hole. No stress, no struggle. Egotistical Desire tries to force the round peg into the square hole and the square peg into the round hole. Cleverness tries to devise craftier ways of making pegs fit where they don’t belong. Knowledge tries to figure out why round pegs fit round holes, but not square holes. Wu Wei doesn’t try. It doesn’t think about it. It just does it.
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The Now of Pooh
Quotes
Within each of us there is an Owl, a Rabbit, an Eeyore, and a Pooh. For too long, we have chosen the way of Owl and Rabbit. Now, like Eeyore, we complain about the results. But that accomplishes nothing. If we are smart, we will choose the way of Pooh. As if from far away, it calls to us with the voice of a child’s mind. It may be hard to hear at times, but it is important just the same, because without it, we will never find our way through the Forest.
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Get the entire The Tao of Pooh LitChart as a printable PDF.
Eeyore Quotes in The Tao of Pooh
The The Tao of Pooh quotes below are all either spoken by Eeyore or refer to Eeyore. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
The Pooh Way
Quotes
It’s not the Clever Mind that’s responsible when things work out. It’s the mind that sees what’s in front of it, and follows the nature of things.
When you work with Wu Wei, you put the round peg in the round hole and the square peg in the square hole. No stress, no struggle. Egotistical Desire tries to force the round peg into the square hole and the square peg into the round hole. Cleverness tries to devise craftier ways of making pegs fit where they don’t belong. Knowledge tries to figure out why round pegs fit round holes, but not square holes. Wu Wei doesn’t try. It doesn’t think about it. It just does it.
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Explanation and Analysis:
The Now of Pooh
Quotes
Within each of us there is an Owl, a Rabbit, an Eeyore, and a Pooh. For too long, we have chosen the way of Owl and Rabbit. Now, like Eeyore, we complain about the results. But that accomplishes nothing. If we are smart, we will choose the way of Pooh. As if from far away, it calls to us with the voice of a child’s mind. It may be hard to hear at times, but it is important just the same, because without it, we will never find our way through the Forest.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
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