batch.motif.daoist-zhuangzi-giles-gutenberg-l11890-l11934
---
record_id: batch.motif.daoist-zhuangzi-giles-gutenberg-l11890-l11934
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
passage_locator:
label: CHAPTER XXIV. / CHAPTER XXV. / CHAPTER XXVI. / CONTINGENCIES.; lines 11890-11934
start: '11890'
end: '11934'
translation: 'Chuang Tzu: Mystic, Moralist, and Social Reformer'
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: The passage contrasts levels of human and sage-like concern; recounts examples
of destructive imitation after official reward or moral admiration; describes
rulers offering the empire to reclusive men who refuse it; and closes with analogies
in which traps and snares are discarded once their purpose is fulfilled, as language
may be ignored once the idea is expressed.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Different ranks of persons are described as not attending to what lower or
other ranks marvel at.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: The keeper of the Yen gate harms himself severely after his parents die and
receives a high official post.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: The keeper's relatives imitate self-harm, and about half of them die.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Yao offers the empire to Hsü Yu, who flees.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: T'ang offers the empire to Wu Kuang, who angrily declines.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Chi T'o hears of Hsü Yu's flight, takes his disciples, and jumps into the
river K'uan.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:7
text: The feudal princes mourn Chi T'o for three years, and Shên T'u Ti has the
river filled up.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:8
text: A fish-trap, rabbit-snare, and language are each described as means that may
be ignored once their object is obtained.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:9
text: The speaker asks where to find a person who can ignore language and still
converse.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: true Sage
description: A figure whose attention is not claimed by what the truly virtuous
man marvels at.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Divine man
description: A figure whose attention is not claimed by what the true Sage marvels
at in the empire.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: truly virtuous man
description: A figure whose attention is not claimed by what the superior man marvels
at in his state.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: superior man
description: A figure whose attention is not claimed by how the mean man adapts
himself to his age.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: mean man
description: A person described as adapting himself to his age.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: keeper of the Yen gate
description: Keeper at the capital of the Sung State who harms himself after his
parents' death and receives a high official post.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: relatives of the keeper
description: Relatives who harm themselves in imitation of the keeper, with about
half dying.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Yao
description: Ruler who offers the empire to Hsü Yu.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Hsü Yu
description: Person who flees when Yao offers him the empire.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: T'ang
description: Ruler who offers the empire to Wu Kuang.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Wu Kuang
description: Person who angrily declines T'ang's offer of the empire.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: Chi T'o
description: Person who hears of Hsü Yu's flight, gathers his disciples, and jumps
into the river K'uan.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:13
name_or_label: disciples of Chi T'o
description: Disciples whom Chi T'o takes with him when he jumps into the river
K'uan.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:14
name_or_label: various feudal princes
description: Princes who mourn Chi T'o for three years.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:15
name_or_label: Shên T'u Ti
description: Person who has the river filled up after the mourning for Chi T'o.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:16
name_or_label: man to ignore language
description: An unnamed desired interlocutor who can ignore language and converse.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
roles:
- id: role:1
label: higher contemplative type
assigned_to:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
basis: The passage arranges these figures by what does or does not claim their attention.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: age-adapting ordinary type
assigned_to:
- fig:5
basis: The mean man is described as adapting himself to his age.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:3
label: rewarded filial self-mortifier
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: He maltreats himself after his parents' death and receives an official post
as reward for filial piety.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: imitator of extreme conduct
assigned_to:
- fig:7
- fig:12
- fig:13
basis: The relatives imitate self-harm for reward, while Chi T'o and his disciples
perform a fatal-seeming act in response to Hsü Yu's example.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: ruler offering empire
assigned_to:
- fig:8
- fig:10
basis: Yao and T'ang each offer the empire to another person.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:6
label: refuser of rule
assigned_to:
- fig:9
- fig:11
basis: Hsü Yu flees the offer of empire, and Wu Kuang declines it with anger.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:7
label: mourner of exemplary death
assigned_to:
- fig:14
basis: The feudal princes mourn Chi T'o for three years.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:8
label: preventer of further river acts
assigned_to:
- fig:15
basis: Shên T'u Ti has the river filled up after Chi T'o's act and the princes'
mourning.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:9
label: ideal word-transcending interlocutor
assigned_to:
- fig:16
basis: The speaker seeks a man who can ignore language and still converse.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: fish-trap
literal_form: fish-trap
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:2
label: fish
literal_form: fish
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:3
label: rabbit-snare
literal_form: rabbit-snare
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:4
label: rabbit
literal_form: rabbit
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:5
label: language
literal_form: language
associated_figures:
- fig:16
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:6
label: idea
literal_form: idea to be expressed
associated_figures: []
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: sym:7
label: river K'uan
literal_form: river K'uan
associated_figures:
- fig:12
- fig:13
- fig:15
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:8
label: empire
literal_form: empire
associated_figures:
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Hierarchy of attention
summary: The passage contrasts what different human or sage-like types marvel at
and what higher types disregard.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
- fig:5
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Rewarded self-mortification and fatal imitation
summary: A gatekeeper's severe self-maltreatment after his parents' death earns
him office, after which relatives imitate the act and some die.
figure_refs:
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Refusal of empire
summary: Yao offers the empire to Hsü Yu, who flees, and T'ang offers it to Wu Kuang,
who angrily refuses.
figure_refs:
- fig:8
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
symbol_refs:
- sym:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: River act after Hsü Yu's flight
summary: Chi T'o reacts to Hsü Yu's flight by taking his disciples and jumping into
the river K'uan; princes mourn, and Shên T'u Ti has the river filled up.
figure_refs:
- fig:9
- fig:12
- fig:13
- fig:14
- fig:15
symbol_refs:
- sym:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Discarding means after attaining purpose
summary: Fish-trap, rabbit-snare, and language are compared as means that can be
ignored once fish, rabbit, or idea has been obtained.
figure_refs:
- fig:16
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
- sym:3
- sym:4
- sym:5
- sym:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: wisdom beyond conventional attention
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage organizes human and sage-like types according to what they do
not attend to or marvel at.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage is philosophical and typological rather than narrative myth.
- id: motif:2
label: destructive imitation of rewarded virtue
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Relatives imitate the gatekeeper's self-maltreatment after his official reward,
and many die.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: No available taxonomy reference directly matches this pattern.
- id: motif:3
label: renunciation of sovereign power
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Hsü Yu flees an offer of the empire, and Wu Kuang declines a similar offer
with anger.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: high
cautions: The passage gives brief exempla without extended context.
- id: motif:4
label: excessive response to exemplary withdrawal
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Chi T'o responds to Hsü Yu's flight by taking his disciples and jumping into
the river, prompting public mourning and the filling of the river.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage's tone and editorial notes suggest criticism of ill-advised
imitation, but extraction is limited to the supplied text.
- id: motif:5
label: discarding words after meaning is obtained
taxonomy_refs:
- wisdom
basis: The passage compares language to traps and snares that are ignored once their
purpose has been achieved, then seeks someone able to ignore language and converse.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
confidence: high
cautions: This is a philosophical analogy rather than an enacted mythic episode.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: 11890-11897
quote_or_summary: The passage contrasts the true Sage, Divine man, truly virtuous
man, superior man, and mean man by what claims or does not claim their attention.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: 11898-11911
quote_or_summary: The keeper of the Yen gate harms himself severely after his parents'
death, receives a high official post for filial piety, and his relatives imitate
the harm, with about half dying.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: 11912-11917
quote_or_summary: Yao offers the empire to Hsü Yu, who flees; T'ang offers it to
Wu Kuang, who declines with anger.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: 11918-11927
quote_or_summary: Chi T'o hears of Hsü Yu's flight, takes his disciples, and jumps
into the river K'uan; feudal princes mourn for three years, and Shên T'u Ti has
the river filled up.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: 11928-11934
quote_or_summary: Fish-trap, rabbit-snare, and language are described as useful
for obtaining fish, rabbit, and expressed idea; once the object is obtained, the
means may be ignored, and the speaker seeks someone who can ignore language and
converse.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/daoist/project-gutenberg/chuang-tzu-giles.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal figures and scenes are clear in the supplied passage. Motif labels
are cautious because the passage is aphoristic and philosophical, and no external
comparison is made in the passage itself.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
No comparison claims were added because the passage does not explicitly support comparison to an external text or tradition within the supplied excerpt.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:daoist-zhuangzi-giles-gutenberg__l11890-l11934
passage_sha256=8d073f9efe14f90fa93e132ee552f985fc47b987202330b1fea5641466e9f306