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By: Justin Alan Proffitt The problems that society presents to us as adults is often portrayed through writing. These writings tend to be more factual when educational writings on the prevention of problems are what is needed. Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, often used childrens stories such as The Lorax, The Sneetches, and Yertle the Turtle to symbolize the problems and prejudices in society. At the same time he enlightened us to the problems, he also provided ways for us to overcome them. Theodor Geisel was born March 2, 1904, to Theodor Robert and Henrietta Seuss Geisel in Springfield, Massachusetts (Moritz 139).
At a very early age, Theodor Geisel developed a talent that would make him very famous later in his life. He developed a strange and unrealistic style of drawing which came about by doodling on his school books. After attending high school at Central High School in Springfield, he decided to further his education at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire (139). While attending Dartmouth, he edited and contributed to cartoons to the campus humor magazine.
After graduating from Dartmouth College with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English, he went on to write columns for the Springfield Union for a few months. Soon after, Proffitt 2 he started graduate work in English literature at Lincoln College, Oxford University in England at which he stayed for one year (139). After returning from Oxford University, he began his career. In 1927, he sold cartoons to magazines such as Judge, Liberty, and Vanity Fair. While working for different magazines, McCann-Erickson, an advertising agency, saw his work and assigned him to an account. He worked for McCann-Erickson for more than a decade, during which he created humorous campaigns featuring bizarre animals.
In 1931, he illustrated for Viking Press. In 1932, he wrote and illustrated his own book, but he could not find a publisher (139). For almost four years, Geisel did nothing that is until 1937. In 1937, Geisel wrote And To Think I Saw It On Mulberry Street.
After the success of that book, he wrote The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins in 1938. In 1939, he began a relationship with Random House Publishing and wrote The Seven Lady Godivas (139). As successful as these stories were, he went on to write the line of books known as Dr. Seuss which sky-rocketed his fame. The Dr.
Seuss books contained small, short choppy sentences with easy words so that children could understand them. He often used these books to present worldly problems, but on a level to which children could relate. The Lorax is a story inside a story. The old Once-ler is telling a young boy his account of where the Lorax had gone. At the Street of the Lifted Lorax, the Once-ler found some Truffula trees. The Once-ler had been searching for these trees because of their bright colors and the silky feel they had to them.
He chopped one down and made a three from it which can be Proffitt 3 used to make a sock, pillowcase, or anything that was needed. All of a sudden, the Lorax appeared. He was very upset because the Once-ler was chopping down the Truffula trees to make a useless three. The Lorax was very angry when a man bought a three, so he left. The Once-ler then called his family, and they moved to the Street of the Lifted Lorax to help bigger his business.
The Once-ler family chopped tree after tree, and once again the Lorax showed up. He spoke for the trees and brown Bar-ba-loots who lived off the trees. They now had to move away or else they would die. The Once-ler didnt care though, he just kept making his business bigger and bigger. A few days passed, and the Lorax showed up again. This time he was speaking for the Same-Swans.
They had to leave, too, because the smoke from the thread factory was making them sick. Even this did not stop the Once-ler. He kept his business growing. Later on, the Lorax showed up once again speaking for!
the Humming-fish. They had to relocate also because of the glop from the three machine was being put into the pond. While the Once-ler and Lorax were talking, the very last Truffula tree was chopped down. The Lorax said nothing. He just left the Once-ler and never looked back.
All that the Lorax left was a small pile of rocks with the word UNLESS on them. For many years the Once-ler worried about the message the Lorax had left on the rocks. After many years, he finally figured out what it meant. It meant that UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. Its not (59). The Once-ler then gives the last Truffula seed so that the boy could plant it.
Then the Lorax and all his friends could return. Proffitt 4 Geisel's The Lorax symbolizes the problem with the environment. His words are a plea to future generations, challenging the youth to revive the wilderness ravaged by their predecessors (Udvari). This particular book was written for the sole purpose of educating children on how to protect the environment so that future generations will have a good place to live. Geisel not only wrote about the environmental problems facing us, he also wrote of the prejudices in society. The Sneetches is a story about two different groups of Sneetchesthe Star-Belly Sneetches and the Plain-Belly Sneetches.
The Star-Belly Sneetches are very snooty, and they exclude the Plain-Belly Sneetches from everything. In their eyes, the Plain-Belly Sneetches are not good enough to participate in anything that the Star-Belly's do. One day a man named Sylvester Mc Monkey McBean shows up. He has a machine to give the Plain-Belly's a star on their belly. McBean charges three dollars for each star.
Now, because of McBean, the Plain-Belly Sneetches have stars; but instead of including them into their group, the Star-Belly Sneetches have their stars removed for ten dollars each. The Sneetches are running in and out of Mc Beans machines until they run out of money. They no longer know who is who so McBean leaves and the Sneetches decide that Sneetches are See! ches and no kind of Sneetches is the Best on the beaches (24). Geisel's The Sneetches symbolizes the problem of prejudice in the world. The Sneetches are of two kinds this can be compared to the human race being different colors.
Often today one race thinks it is superior to the others just as the Star-Belly Sneetches thought of themselves as being superior to the Plain-Belly Sneetches. The story of The Sneetches teaches Proffitt 5 children that all are equal, and that no one race or person is better than the other. Theodor Geisel also wrote of historical events which led to the injustice of mankind and misuse of power. Geisel's best known book symbolizing this is Yertle the Turtle. Yertle is the king of the Island of Sala-ma-send.
He is a very arrogant and conceited turtle. Yertle is so obsessed with being ruler and king that he wants to rule over more than just the island. Yertle then orders nine turtles to stack one on another, and Yertle climbs to the top. Once on top, Yertle decides he is ruler over everything he sees. Not satisfied, Yertle orders for two hundred more turtles to pile on the stack. Right after the order is given, Yertle hears the voice of Mack, the turtle on the bottom.
Mack asks Yertle to please not stack any more because his back is hurting, and he is hungry. Yertle tells him to hush, and the turtles continue to pile on. Once again, after Yertle reaches the top, he is not satisfied. Yertle orders for 5, 607 turtles to pile on top of Mack. Right after! the order for more turtles, Mack burps.
His burp shakes the tower of turtles, and Yertle falls off into the mud. From that day on, he is known as King of the Mud. Geisel goes on to say And the turtles; of course all the turtles are free as turtles and, maybe, all creatures should be (Seuss, Yertle the Turtle 28). The story of Yertle, a deceitful turtle, is a parable on the life of Hitler (Moritz 140). Yertle portrays Hitler and his obsession for power.
The lesson Geisel uses in this story is that pride can be a persons greatest downfall, just as it was for Yertle. Proffitt 6 The line of Dr. Seuss books are all very important lessons. The reactions to the books that Geisel wrote, under the name of Dr. Seuss are still evident today considering that Even after his death in 1991, Dr. Seuss continues to be the best-selling author of childrens books in the world (Moritz 140).
Geisel's books were an influencing factor upon many readers. Dr. Suess was a unique talent, and I am never surprised by the number and diversity of people who cite his books as an influence (Da Rosa). Theodor Geisel simply conveyed messages through his childrens books. Each book symbolically represented a problem in society but gave its readers a way to solve it.
In Geisel's own way, he influenced the minds of many children who are now the leaders and influencing the factors of our future.
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