Monday, February 11, 2008

smart Seuss!

well, i was going to do a series this week. a series about dr. Seuss and his not-so-subtle socially concious children's books. the plan was to do one a week and discuss, but since none of them are published online and i am far too lazy to type the words to each of the books out, you can just go read them for yourselves. seriously, this dude was really about something. i've been reading my old favorites to my daughter and 25-ish years after i was introduced to Seuss, they have a whole new meaning. for starters, try these on for size:

-The Butter Battle Book (for anyone who needs a little perspective on the meaning of war)
-Yertle the Turtle (regarding power, authority and the civil obedience of the minions)
-The Sneetches (a look at discrimination and the ability of some people to capitalize on our fears of differences)

check 'em out. as much as we like to analyze and debate all of society's flaws, sometimes it's so much simpler than that. so simple, in fact, it can be reduced to a child's terms and still make plenty of sense.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

We mean what we say and we say what we mean, this is the best Dr. Seuss book we've ever seen! Well maybe it's not his absolute best, considering all of the good doctor's rest. Can't really say best, can't really say that. There's no Grinch, no Yertle, no Cat in the Hat. But the story here in not merely wordplay; it has a message, has something to say. "The Butter Battle Book" is a Cold War fable that parents should discuss with their kids if they're able. War escalates over butter on bread. Should it be on top or the bottom instead? That's what the Zooks and the Yerks fight about, and Seuss leaves the ending very much in doubt.