Classic tale by Dr. Seuss helps children learn about the importance of protecting our natural resources

Image: onthelap

The Cat in the Hat. Green Eggs and Ham. Fox in Socks. Horton Hears a Who. These are just a few books written by one of the greatest storytellers of all time: Dr. Seuss.  To this day I still love every story written by Dr. Seuss because the rhymes were fun and engaging and the pictures were always colorful and eye-catching.

I have to admit that I never thought about any deeper meaning behind the stories because I was too caught up imagining The Cat being a pest or The Grinch stealing presents. However, there is one Dr. Seuss tale that’s both fun to read and offers a powerful message about the environment, and that’s The Lorax.

In a nutshell, The Lorax is about a boy who visits a town that was once full of beautiful Truffula Trees. The town is invaded by the evil Once-ler, who chops down all of the trees to make Thneeds garments. The Once-ler is driven by money and greed, so he pays no attention to The Lorax, who pleads to keep the trees alive.  Soon a factory is built and every living Truffula Tree is cut down, leaving the town empty and desolate.  The Lorax and the other creatures leave the Once-ler behind to find a new home, so he’s left alone in the midst of his own destruction. The story ends with the Once-ler giving the boy the last Truffula Tree seed, which will hopefully be used to bring the trees back.

Want to see just how destructive man (a.k.a. the Once-ler) can be to the environment? Here’s a clip from the 1972 film:



The Lorax was written in 1971 during a time when the U.S. was dealing with the backlash of the 1960’s environmental movement. Most notably, trees in the Pacific Northwest were being cut down at an alarming rate by logging companies. So you can imagine how unhappy these companies were to hear that good old Dr. Seuss had written a story about deforestation.  In fact, a lot of people were upset about The Lorax.  Here are a few interesting facts about it:

1. It was banned in some schools and libraries that have timber-rich industries.
2. In 1989 the Laytonville, CA Unified School District tried to ban the book because they said it criminalizes the foresting industry.
3. Several timber industry groups sponsored the creation of a book called The Truax in rebuttal to the book.  It was written to help kids understand the importance of harvesting trees.
4. The line "I hear things are just as bad up in Lake Erie" was removed more than fourteen years after the story was published after two research associates from the Ohio Sea Grant Program wrote to Seuss about the clean-up of Lake Erie.  The line remains in the DVD release of the special. (source: Wikipedia)

Okay, I understand why the logging industry was upset about the book, but was it really necessary to ban it?  It’s a lovable Dr. Seuss story!  In my opinion The Lorax should be required reading from kindergarten through high school.  When you look beyond the rhymes and the pretty pictures you realize that the story teaches children about conservation, respect for the environment and love of all living creatures.  That’s something that every human being, regardless of age, should learn.



Image: bunnyandrobert

So, what’s your opinion?  Is The Lorax an educational and environmental read, or is it a ruthless attempt to destroy the logging industry?