PAPER TOPICS I: REL 444/544 Medieval Japanese Buddhism
Due Thursday, Jan 28 in class.
* Three pages: Not more than 1000 words (You may use parenthetical
notation to indicate page numbers for textual references.)
* I encourage you to discuss these topics with one another.
* Be sure to write your name, the name of the class, and the title of
your topic at the top of the page.
* I also strongly encourage you to read the essays on my Writing web
pages, especially "Four Keys to Writing in the Humanities," "Paper
Writing Guidelines," "Checklist for Papers," "Writing: The Bridge
between Consciousness and Unconsciousness," and "Clauses and
Commas."
A. Discuss the role of nature, simplicity, and skillful intuition in the life of the Daoist adept. Focus on one or two figures from the Zhuangzi who illustrate this themes. Devote at least one paragraph to discussing the potential pitfalls of this Daoist vision.
B. Discuss the Butterfly episode (p. 44) in terms of the relation between perspectivalism (see, for example, pp. 40-41), the dissolution of boundaries, and the oneness of all things (see, for example, p. 38). Is the butterfly episode representative of one of these or all three of these "phases" of Zhuangzi's Daoism. Are there any problems or limitations in viewing the butterfly episode in this way?
C. Discuss Zhuangzi's analysis of distinctions as found in the Discussion on Making Things Equal, especially pp. 34-35, 38-39. What is the relation between the style of expression and the content of Zhuangzi's logic? Spend one or two paragraphs noting possible similarities and differences between Zhuangzi's view of distinctions/no distinctions and Nagarjuna's Mahayana Buddhist view of emptiness and the two-fold truth (click on this link)
Karma and the Tale of the Heike