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A review by machen27
Winnie-The-Pooh: The Tao of Pooh & the Te of Piglet by Benjamin Hoff
Did not finish book. Stopped at 50%.
The Tao of Pooh seems to be a reasonable enough description of Taoism via the lens of Pooh, but Benjamin Hoff tips his hand pretty quickly that he is incurious and dogmatic in his adherence to Taoist philosophy. I started Te of Piglet and was immediately bombarded with further ranting about how we have lost our way and how just “being” will solve the problems human society has subjected itself to.
The most damning part of this work is that I often agree with Hoff’s critiques. Capitalism has created a consumption culture that *is* harmful. Western science *has* failed to consider bases of knowledge and made great mistakes as a result (see, for example, the use of intentional fires as a forest management tool long used by many Indigenous cultures that was completely rejected by Western ideas of forest management until recently), I can’t recommend this work because Hoff constructs strawmen of the ideas he critiques, failing to really engage with the ways Taoism works (and doesn’t) in addressing the ails he raises. Skimming The Te of Piglet only shows this more fully. It’s fluffy pop philosophy and you’re better served reading pretty much anything else.
The most damning part of this work is that I often agree with Hoff’s critiques. Capitalism has created a consumption culture that *is* harmful. Western science *has* failed to consider bases of knowledge and made great mistakes as a result (see, for example, the use of intentional fires as a forest management tool long used by many Indigenous cultures that was completely rejected by Western ideas of forest management until recently), I can’t recommend this work because Hoff constructs strawmen of the ideas he critiques, failing to really engage with the ways Taoism works (and doesn’t) in addressing the ails he raises. Skimming The Te of Piglet only shows this more fully. It’s fluffy pop philosophy and you’re better served reading pretty much anything else.