All Thais know about Winnie-the-Pooh, the world famous teddy bear from films, DVDs, and TV shows, although they may not have read the original books in which the character was created. Written by the English author A. A. Milne, they are in the collection of the Thammasat University Library.

The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh, published in 1926. It may be of interest to TU students, even those who are not doing research about children’s literature. Although originally intended for children to read or to be read to children, the Pooh stories contain some descriptions of characters that refer to human psychology. Winnie-the-Pooh’s friends Piglet, a small toy pig; Eeyore, a toy donkey; Owl, a live owl; Rabbit, a live rabbit; Kanga, a toy kangaroo, and her son Roo all behave like people in a way that adult readers may appreciate.

The action of the books is definitely what is expected in a story appropriate for children. For example, the chapter In Which Pooh Goes Visiting and Gets into a Tight Place:

Pooh visits Rabbit, but eats so much while in Rabbit’s house that he gets stuck in Rabbit’s door on the way out.

or

In Which Eeyore has a Birthday and Gets Two Presents

Pooh feels bad that no one has gotten Eeyore anything for his birthday, so he and Piglet try their best to get him presents.

These are themes that every reader, no matter how young, can understand.

Adaptations

Of course, Winnie-the-Pooh has been translated into Thai language, and the TU Library owns copies of this translation by Thanphayu Towira. The book has also been translated into Latin. This may be useful for TU students who are studying Latin. Starting with a simply written book like Winnie-the-Pooh can be a friendly and fun introduction to reading a foreign language. The Latin translation was by a Hungarian author, Lénárd Sándor (Alexander Lenard), and is titled Winnie ille Pu. It may be borrowed by Interlibrary Loan.

Surprisingly, when Winnie ille Pu was published in the late 1950s, it became a bestseller. Winnie-the-Pooh was also translated into Esperanto in the 1970s. This edition is available in the TU Library collection. It is shelved in the General Stacks of the Pridi Banomyong Library, Tha Prachan campus. As many students know, Esperanto is an international auxiliary language created in the 1800s to encourage peace and international understanding. TU students of linguistics and related subjects may need to learn something about Latin or Esperanto, and it is good to have a friendly text in those languages that is not scary. If we must read a book in a foreign language, it is difficult to be discouraged or worried if the book is only the familiar Winnie-the-Pooh.

Inspirations

In a similar way, some writers have used the familiarity and comfort that readers feel about Winnie-the-Pooh to introduce other subjects. Students at the Thammasat Business School (TBS) may have seen Winnie-The-Pooh on Management: In Which a Very Important Bear and His Friends Are Introduced to a Very Important Subject.

This book is shelved in the General Stacks of the Puey Ungphakorn Library, Rangsit Campus. Its author, Roger E. Allen, was an associate of a management consulting firm. Trained as an industrial and mechanical engineer, he gained line management experience with Proctor & Gamble, Root Corporation, and other prominent companies. His book attempts to introduce serious subjects including business purpose, managerial skills, and motivation, by using the characters and tone of the original Winnie-the-Pooh book. While this approach may not please every reader, if students are worried about the challenging aspects of ideas such as organizational theory, this may be one way to start thinking about them without too much anxiety.

Another example of using Winnie-the-Pooh to help students understand complex subjects is the bestselling Tao of Pooh, which the TU Library owns in Thai translation. As TU students of philosophy know, Tao is a Chinese word meaning way, path, or doctrine. In traditional Chinese philosophy and religion, Tao is the natural order of the universe. To be wise, people must perceive this natural order by everyday experience. The TU Library owns many serious explanations of this philosophical tradition, such as The Essential Tao: An Initiation into the Heart of Taoism through the Authentic Tao Te Ching and the Inner Teachings of Chuang-Tzu.

The Tao of Pooh uses the characters of the Winnie-the-Pooh stories to explain the basic ideas of Taoism. This book was followed by a sequel, The Te of Piglet, which is also available in English and Thai language editions from the TU Library. The original English version of The Te of Piglet is shelved in the General Stacks of the Boonchoo Treethong Library, Lampang Campus, while the Thai language translation is found at the Boonchoo Treethong Library, Lampang Campus and the General Stacks of the Pridi Banomyong Library, Tha Prachan campus.

The Tao of Pooh describes how Winnie-the-Pooh and other characters from A. A. Milne’s stories are similar to, and sometimes different from, ideals of Taoist philosphy. For example, Winnie-the-Pooh is an example of the notion of wei wu wei, the Taoist concept of doing things without effort. As we know, Winnie-the-Pooh enjoys strolling around looking for honey, rather than working hard. Another concept from Tao philosophy is called pu, being open to experience but not weighed down by it. According to The Tao of Pooh, Winnie-the-Pooh has the right approach in following Tao ideals, since his view of life is not too complicated. Some examples of Winnie-the-Pooh’s direct and simple thought processes:

• “If there’s a buzzing-noise, somebody’s making a buzzing-noise, and the only reason for making a buzzing-noise that I know of is because you’re a bee.” Then he thought another long time, and said: “And the only reason for being a bee that I know of is making honey.” And then he got up, and said: “And the only reason for making honey is so I can eat it.” So he began to climb the tree.
• Pooh always liked a little something at eleven o’clock in the morning, and he was very glad to see Rabbit getting out the plates and mugs; and when Rabbit said, “Honey or condensed milk with your bread?” he was so excited that he said, “Both,” and then, so as not to seem greedy, he added, “But don’t bother about the bread, please.”
• “I have been Foolish and Deluded,” said he, “and I am a Bear of No Brain at All.”

(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)