Question

around this time, confucius (551 bce-479 bce) helped make chopsticks popular. confucius was an ancient chinese philosopher and devoted vegetarian. he also preached nonviolence. he asked people not to use knives at the dinner table. confucius worried that the sight of knives on the table would stir up ideas about violence. his followers connected chopsticks with peace. confuciuss teachings spread across china and other parts of asia. that led more people to adopt the use of chopsticks.
today, chopsticks are widely used. theyve become more than just a means to devour food. sometimes people wear chopsticks in their hair. in china, people often collect finely painted chopsticks. they give them as gifts, too. chopsticks are a common chinese wedding present for a newly married couple. theyre used to wish the couple happiness and express hope that theyll never part from each other.
theres a lot of history behind those two sticks.
question 5
according to the article, why did confucius encourage the use of chopsticks?
a. because he was a devoted vegetarian and found it easier to eat rice and noodles with chopsticks
b. because he preached nonviolence and worried that knives would give people violent ideas
c. because he understood that people were trying to find ways to speed up cooking and save on fuel
d. because he was convinced that chopsticks would react to certain poisons like arsenic or cyanide

Explanation:

To answer this, we refer to the article: "He also preached nonviolence. He asked people not to use knives at the dinner table. Confucius worried that the sight of knives on the table would stir up ideas about violence." Option A mentions eating rice/noodles easily, which isn't in the text. Option C is about cooking speed, not mentioned. Option D is about poison reaction, not in the article. Option B matches the nonviolence and knife - related violent ideas context.

Answer:

B. Because he preached nonviolence and worried that knives would give people violent ideas