Kid_eLit +

AUTHOR:  Dr. Seuss, Theodor Seuss Geisel
AGES:  4 – 8 years old
REVIEW:  The Lorax, even though controversial, is a great book for children to read.  It is important for them to understand the value of taking care of our world at a young age.  The story begins when a boy wanders into an area where everything is dark and lonely and where very few living things live.  At this time, the Once-ler appears and begins telling the boy how the town was once beautiful, lively, and full of animals.  The Once-ler notices a neat tree and uses it to create a thneed.  The Lorax protests the cutting down of the tree.  However, the Once-ler sells his first thneed and sees a new business.  The Lorax continually warns the Once-ler about the pollution his business is creating.  Everything is fine for this thneed-selling business until the last Truffala tree is cut down.  Everyone leaves the town, and the Once-ler is by himself in this town.  The Once-ler realizes he has a seed left and gives it to the boy and tells him to go plant a tree.  For a plot summary, please visit amazon.com.

The point of the story is, first of all, plant new trees as you cut them down.  This is evident when the Once-ler leaves the boy the one remaining seed.  The authors are saying that no matter how bad a situation can get that we can still make a difference, even if it is just one tree at a time.  We have to start somewhere.   They also make the point that we should do what we can to protect living creatures in the area, even if it may be inconvenient for a company.  The Once-ler could have listened to the Lorax and taken a few minor changes to save the nearby animals without a major sacrifice on his behalf.

The story also hints about the importance of property rights.  Furthermore, Jonathan Adler states in his blog that “the Lorax is easily seen a story about property rights…and the inevitable environmental consequences of poor institutions.”  I see his point of view, and even though we do not know who owns the trees, environmental regulations should have been in place.  Even if the Once-ler owned the land, he has a responsibility to protect the surrounding environment.  Today, regulations are in place to discourage the abusive practices.

I like a post by Rogers Sweeny that states “a person who really wanted to make money would have cut down only some of the trees, then planted more so he could harvest them later and make money for years and years to come.”  The point is well-made and is a good model for any lumbering company.  People should not let laziness or greed lead them to such actions that the Once-ler took.  Visit Mr. Sweeny's comment to read the complete post.  The video-version of The Lorax is a great resource and can be seen at Google Video.

Guest Blogger:  Matthew T. is a graduate student at the University of Memphis who is pursuing degrees in teaching and accounting.  Matthew has gained and still is gaining experience as a tutor at the University of Memphis and Southwest Tennessee Community College.  He currently volunteers at local children’s homes in the Memphis area and in children’s ministries at his church.  He ultimately plans to teach high school mathematics.  Matthew is a student in Dr. Anna Clifford's IDT 7061 course, Spring 08.

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