"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing
is going to get better. It's not." - Dr. Seuss, The Lorax
Long before environmental consciousness meshed with modern
social awareness, and decades prior to the healthy-living, 'green' attitude
that is growing among college-educated Americans, Dr. Seuss wrote a book. This
book, The Lorax, was filled of Seuss'
distinctive fictional creatures and tongue twisting names. It was another
rollercoaster ride onboard perfectly placed fanciful verbiage that grabbed the
hearts of adults and children alike. Dr. Seuss was famed for incorporating obscure
moral themes into his work and The Lorax,
first published in 1971, was a timely representation of the recent
political and environmental turmoil. By 1971, the first Earth Day had passed,
the Clean Air Act was beginning to crack down on industrial pollution, and
restless citizens urged the American government to act on severe contamination
of lakes and streams.
The book begins with
a small boy living in a hazy, polluted town. In search of an explanation for
the desolate land, the boy pays a visit
to an isolated 'Once-ler' who lives in a rickety tower on the outskirts of the
village. In a long flashback, the Once-ler tells his tale of how things came to
be. Readers are taken back into the Once-ler's first memories where giant
fields of brightly colored 'Truffula' trees supported a thriving community of
'Brown Bar-ba-loots'. The crystal streams teemed with 'Humming Fish' and the
land sparkled with natural glory.
Things take a turn for the worst when the Once-ler sees the
Truffula trees as a valuable resource. One by one, he hacks away at the trees
and uses them to craft the fashionable and multi-purpose 'Thneed'. The scarf-like sweater garment is then marketed as a hot item that everyone needs. Demands increase, and with dollar
signs in his eyes, the Once-ler cuts
down more trees.
At this point Seuss introduces the Lorax, a furry little
creature and forest keeper. "I am the Lorax! I speak for the trees. I speak
for the trees, for the trees have no tongues!" The Lorax expresses his
overriding concern to the Once-ler and warns that there will be terrible repercussions
following the unsustainable destruction of the Truffula trees. Of course, the
greedy Once-ler pays no attention to the Lorax and his forewarning. The Once-ler then expands to a Thneed factory and
builds machines capable of cutting down multiple trees at a time. Polluting
smoke stacks emit billowing clouds of black smog and the Truffula forest begins
to shrink. Still, production carries on.
In a satirical depiction of consumer driven society, hoards
of people (you never actually see more than their avaricious fingers) inundate
the land in pursuit of that Thneed that
they need! No one but the Lorax seems to notice the rapid deterioration of
the forest and the pollution of the crystal streams. The minds of the Once-ler
and his customers remain fixed on the market and the visible destruction passes
just below their oblivious noses. When will they be shaken to reality? when
their noses are full of smog and the polluted water becomes unsightly?
The Lorax tries desperately to stop the destruction, yet the
Brown Bar-ba-loots are forced to migrate from their homeland and the Humming
fish choke on the contaminated water. It is not until the
Once-ler chops down
the very last Truffula tree that he understands the severity of the devastation.
There is nothing left. There will never again be a Truffula tree to turn into a
Thneed. The factory doors are boarded shut, the land is dead, and with great dismay,
the Lorax leaves. Alone in his own created wasteland, the Once-ler retreats to
his tower home.
The flashback ends
and the boy is left with a perplexing dilemma. How can he help? Is there any
way to right the wrong and to restore the land to its historical natural beauty?
UNLESS. The Once-ler hands the boy a seed, a Truffula seed. "Unless someone like you cares a whole
awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not." With the weight
of the land upon him, the boy realizes the potential of the seed. If he were to
plant and care for it, he may be able to grow a tree. This glimmer of hope in a
world so blind to environmental damage draws a strong parallel to our own
society.
"Unless someone like YOU cares a whole awful
lot..."- Seuss brilliantly and
passionately empowers his readers with their own hint of light. These words
serve as a call to action.
Large-scale environmental change stems from individual
concern for the environment. Though Dr. Seuss was not the first nor the last enlightened
individual to weigh in on this concept, I hope his words rattle your thoughts and
spark your own contribution to the world. It really is simple. Nothing will get better unless you strive to make it
so. Apathy is as dangerous as holding
the ax yourself.
Happy birthday Dr. Seuss!
