Easter Island And Lorax Similarities

he Tragedy of the Commons in The Lorax and Easter IslandThe Tragedy of the commons is a situation in which a publicly owned resource is exploited to such an extent that the resource is ruined. This means that users of the resource canno longer benefit from it. A uniform idea in the tragedy of the commons is that each person does not weigh the effect of their exploitation of the resource enough, resulting in the resource being over-exploited and eventually being destroyed. Two examples of the tragedy of the commons are Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, and the story of Easter Island. Although the parties involved in The Lorax and Easter Island may not have cooperated in the same ways, their environments were similarly exploited, resulting in a tragic loss of the public resource available to them. In The Lorax, the Once-ler stumbles upon a truffula forest which he finds to be perfect for his business. He begins to harvest the resources, but is constantly bothered by the Lorax. The Lorax speaks on behalf of the trees, hoping the Once-ler will halt his destructive behavior, however there is no cooperation between the Once-ler and the Lorax. This is unlike the tribes on Easter Island. The natives of Easter Island needed to trade and cooperate with each other to be able to construct the many large statues. Pakandam stated, “...resources were distributed unequally in various parts of the island, what one region lacked, another had in bountiful scores. This forced trade and cooperation as a natural part of life” (11). Although the parties in The Lorax and Easter Island did cooperate in the same way, they still lead to the exploitation of the available resources.

You probably noticed changes in the environment as the Once-ler went about the business of making thneeds. You might, for example, remember that the Lorax complained about the “smoggy air” caused by the Once-ler’s factory. The smoggy air is an environmental problem. An environmental problem occurs when the condition of something or someone in the natural environment is threatened by a change. The air was clean and fresh before the Once-ler’s activities; but pollution made it dirty and smelly. That is, the

The story begins with the Once-ler, informing the reader of the local natural history of the now world and how it was once home to the Lorax. The Onceler discloses to us that the Lorax can speak for the trees because tress have no tongues. The Once-ler has greedily taken advantage of this natural habitat, which was once home to the Truffula Tress. The Once-ler cruelly destroyed all the Truffula Trees to merchandise “thneeds”. Pollution is evident through the deformation and pursuit of economic gain of the Once-ler. All the creatures who

When Dr. Suess wrote The Lorax it was in response to deforestation if he were alive today I think he would make another version of the Lorax however this time it would be about polluting the ocean. Riding in the with my cousin once I watched him throw a can out of the window. I can remember getting mad at him and asking him what he was doing and all he said was, "someone else will pick it up, it's not like it is a big deal." Well at the time I let it go and thought nothing more of it. Time continued on and when I was in sixth grade my mom and I went to Florida as your driving on a dirt road, how about that drive through meal bag that your spouse can’t know about because you and your supposed to be eating healthy? Or watched someone else throw that spit bottle out the window? Believe it or not things like these examples have an impact on the world. We’ve all heard the reduce, reuse, recycle but why are people so adamant about it? Perfect examples of reasons why people do this can be seen in the ocean ecosystems. More and more of our wastes are ending up in the ocean and harming the animals living there. Innocent animals that just want to survive and thrive aren’t getting the opportunity to try because of trash and litter that floats and sinks in the ocean.

For the most part, though a childrenʻs story, The Lorax is an environmentalist message targeted to urge young readers who are in time, going to determine our future, to learn from the tragic results of the Oncelerʻs actions. In the beginning of the story, the Onceler discovers the trufffula trees and begins to cut them down carelessly to make clothing, which in turn provided him money to use for his own selfish reasons. In reaction to the Oncelerʻs cruel actions, the Lorax confronts and warns the Onceler that if he continues to pollute the environment and cutting down the resources and homes of the species that live in it there will be consequences. Not caring about anything or anyone but himself, the Onceler continues to cut down the trees and use them for his own benefits, which continues to cause damage to the land and the species

In the article by Jared Diamond, many interesting theories are discussed about Easter Island’s history and decline. Diamond makes connections to the environmental challenges we face today and he compares the catastrophe of Easter Island to our current over consumption of natural resources. While this article makes for an interesting read, much of it is offered from a single perspective and little counter evidence is offered. The author writes in a way that could engage a non-academic audience who may not be interested in counter evidence, or proper referencing. The article lacks credibility due to its narrow scope and conversational diction. At the root of this discussion however, is the notion that the Rapa Nui people were

In current days, in the face of governmental practices causing the destruction of Irala's landscape, soil nutrients, fishing population, and the slow deterioration of the

could live there, and to have a supply of trees for the future. In Easter

One theme of AP World History very relevant here today is the interaction between humans and the environment. Our community relies on agriculture, winemaking to be specific. In fact, our very survival as a community depends on a berry the size of a marble. The economy is very dependent on environmental factors, all of which affect the

In many ways, modern environmental disasters serve as literal and symbolic reminders of the absolutely barbarous history of colonization, a history built on resource extraction and ecological devastation, a history many in power hope to silence and forget.

The Lorax as an environmental study, then we can connect the themes in the story to

     The people of Easter Island came over to their new land, and recognized that it was ideal for them to settle. The land was lush; the sea was providing a bounty of fresh fish, and other seafood. The earth was dark brown, and very rich. Everything was just the way it needed to be to support a growing community of people.

Lush to barren, bio-diverse to disturbed, blooming beauty to foul crudeness—is a common theme plaguing the natural world at this precise moment in time. Humans are overtaxing the splendor of nature, altering it into an unrecognizable wasteland ravaged by greed and economic lust. Such a modification can even be fatal, extinguishing green eternally in replacement of stark soil that sadly anticipates some form of aid with the capability to maybe replenish it. Within “The Lorax” and the land mass known as Easter Island, both environments are victim to the immoral whims of humanity and the consequent demolition it wreak, the two merely differing in the advancement of technology.

From this podcast, many ideas, experiences, and questions were expressed. The podcast was arranged in an almost story format, which made it interesting to listen to and aided in its understanding. The central topic of this was the Galapagos islands, a group of large and small islands that are largely unique to the rest of the world and is revered by scientists. Since the islands themselves and the diverse flora/ fauna that live there are very unique, they cause great issues yet great discoveries that were discussed in the podcast. Surprisingly, there was more issues related to islands like the tortoises, finches, goats, and political disagreements. The islands had the absolute worst of human intervention.We are the ones who introduced goats

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss depicts a world ravaged by deforestation and suffering from other environmental crises. In the town of Thneedville, an aspiring capitalist begins to sell his new product and as a result of booming business, the cornerstone of his business pays the price. The trees, the only natural resource used in production, are harvested to the point of extinction. The lack of trees leads to soil erosion, air pollution, and species extinction. While this is a children’s tale and Dr. Seuss’s illustration may be quite extreme, it is a reality for future generations of our planet. Human involvement in ecosystems by clearing land for urban development, logging, and agriculture have all exacerbated the rate of decline in the region’s natural systems. The deforestation of rainforests for the cultivation of palm oil is causing the possible extinction of orangutans and exacerbating air quality issues in Indonesia.