EALC 275: Masterpieces of East Asian Literature
Anqi Chen September 11, 2013
Why the big gourds are useful?
During the debate between Huizi and Zhuangzi on the “usefulness of
uselessness” of the big gourds, Huizi held the position that the gourds were no use
since they were too enormous and clumsy to be either water containers or dippers.
While Zhuangzi thought they were useful because they were big enough to be a great
tub that can float around rivers and lakes. Although it is futile to use the big gourds as
water containers or dippers because of their heavy weight, the gourds are quite
available as Zhuangzi discovered the value of seemingly useless things through a
spiritually free, innovative and holistic way. Hence, between the two positions above,
