Of all the Animals in the Forest, only two have proper names.
Now, Owl is an owl, Rabbit is a rabbit, Tigger is a tigger, Kanga is a
kanga with Roo as a roo (although more properly, he is a Joey.) Bear
i's called Edward or Pooh or Winnie-the-Pooh. And Donkey is called
Eeyore. More significantly, Bear and Donkey not only have proper names,
their full names make them special: not just Winnie, but Winnie-ther-Pooh,
and not just Eeyore, but Eeyore the Old Grey Donkey. You see? Eeyore
has depth. Not just "Donkey" Eeyore is somebody. And he is somebody
almost always misunderstood
Eeyore may appear gloomy, and he may seem sardonic, but for all that, he
is highly likable (and he was a favorite of Mr. Shepard, who said, "I have
such sympathy for Eeyore always"). In origins, as Christopher Milne
informs us, "Eeyore, too, was an early present. Perhaps in his younger
days he had held his head higher, but by the time the stories came to be
written his neck had gone like that and this had given him his gloomy disposition.
Perhaps Eeyore only appears more gloomy than he actually is. Even
if a case cannot be made that Eeyore the Old Grey Donkey gallops round
the thistly bits of the Forest like a young whatever young donkeys are
called, he shows himself to be a kind, thoughtful Animal.
And not like some. All
in all, Eeyore thinks, he ponders, he uses Brains.
Eeyore's generosity is boundless. Even if the habits of Bouncing Animals
such as Tiggers are somewhat distressing, Eeyore still shows himself
to have a generous nature, especially when it comes to sharing his favorite
patch of thistles. Eeyore is a connoisseur of thistles (that is,
he knows his thistles), and because he is also a philosophizing type of
animal, he is not above philosophizing over food. He talks about
the right way to eat as well as the better way to eat something.
Finally the affectionate sensitive nature of Eeyore is especially evident
in the story about Eeyore and the loss of his tail.
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