Philosophy : The Lorax By Dr. Seuss

With this lesson, we begin a new unit on epistemology, which is the philosophical study of knowledge claims. In this first lesson on epistemology, we begin by examining the question “What do we mean when we say we know something?” What exactly is knowledge? We will begin with a presentation that introduces the traditional definition of knowledge. Wood then discusses some of the basic issues raised in the study of epistemology and then presents an approach to epistemology that focuses on obtaining the intellectual virtues, a point we will elaborate on in the next lesson.

Theodor Seuss Geisel, more famously known by his pen name Dr. Seuss, “was a writer... cartoonist [, and a political illustrator] who had published over 60 books” (Dr. Seuss Biography) in his lifetime and has influenced nearly every American that has ever learned how to read. With children stories that hold deeper insight than most would expect to find in children books to stories that are pure nonsensical like Green Eggs and Ham that came from a bet (Biography). Dr. Seuss’s literary elements in his seemingly innocent works hold deeper meaning behind them and often paralleling to the events that were happening during his lifetime, like his book Yertle the Turtle. Dr. Seuss’s life had lead him into becoming an influential person in many people’s

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.

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss is a children's book about greed and destruction. The book is set in the forest of Truffula Trees. The Once-ler was riding through the country in his wagon one day and discovers the beautiful forest of Truffula Trees.

An educational philosophy is a personal statement of a teacher’s goals or belief. A teacher comes to the classroom with a distinctive set of principles and ideals that affect how a student learns and expand the child’s potential in his or her venture into knowledge. I believe that education should be active, and focus on the whole child, rather than just the content or the teacher. The three (3) principles I believe that work harmoniously with my educational philosophy are the teacher acting as a facilitator to foster critical thinking, allowing the child’s natural curiosity to steer his or her learning for personal development, and

Dr. Seuss did not only use his stories to influence and teach children to read, but he used them to encourage children to think critically about serious issues happening in the world around us. In hopes that the adults of the future become aware of their surroundings and correct the mistakes of today’s society. In Dr.Seussʻs children story, Through the events that occur within the story of The Lorax, Dr. Seuss attempts to inform children reading that if todayʻs society continues to put wants before the needs of the environment, the environment in result, will slowly begin to lose its meaning. The Lorax displays events of greed, industrialization, and the desperate need to protect and

Furthermore, the illustrations paint a beautiful picture that I like to think is an insight into a child’s mind, which I is a key element in this book and what makes it so great. Since the book is narrated by a child the intentional simplicity of the words and the controlled chaos that is the illustrations breathes unadulterated life into a rather normal children’s book.

The Cat in the Hat by Dr.Seuss is a children’s book that was made into a movie. The Cat in the Hat is based on a cat who wears the colors red and white. The author decided to use the words cat and hat for rhyming. This allow children to remember the book and certain things that are in it. The story can be seen as a fun reading for children who connect to the children in the story. The story is very humorous because the characters are not that realistic. In real life one would never see a fish talking and telling children what to do or a cat who is able to put on many different games and then clean up in the matter of seconds. The Cat in the Hat can be seen as a novel of prose

“ I do not like green eggs and ham I do not like them Sam-I-Am.” These famous words not only started my childhood but many children’s childhood. Theodore Seuss Geisel or most commonly known as Dr. Seuss was born on March 2, 1994 and from there the world was changed. Theodore Geisel is a charismatic man who put his lively personality into his fun and lighthearted books like Green Eggs and Ham, The classic Cat in the Hat, and the iconic How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

A poet, a teacher, an activist – These are all the things that Theodor Seuss Geisel managed to be. Geisel was born into the German family of Theodor Robert Geisel and Henrietta Seuss Geisel on March 2, 1904. He grew up having pride in his German background, but it all changed to shame after he experienced the torment of living through WWI. Despite the discouraging experiences he had during those times, they were not enough to stop the very talented “Dr. Seuss”. Geisel showed many that there were no boundaries to the imagination. Because of the hardships he had to overcome, the impact he left on young children, and the criticism he received from others, Theodor Seuss Geisel will always be remembered as the

Dr. Seuss is probably the American writer who has so far had the greatest impact on children's literature. The intelligent usage of vivid illustrations, imaginative characters, and catchy rhymes made it easy for people who grew up reading these stories to recognize them. However, although the author worked tirelessly at his craft, he is not well-known since he did not seek after personal fame. Most of the fans to his literary materials are not well conversant with the details of his private life. For instance, most people are not aware that Dr. Seuss was not a doctor, but simply added the prefix to his pseudonym to provide credibility to the menagerie of characters in his works (Thompson 21). He worked as a writer and a cartoonist, publishing nearly more than sixty books. Some of the most famous pieces of his work include “Green Eggs and Ham” and the “The Cat in the Hat.”

Dr. Seuss I took an unconventional approach in the topic I chose for my reading assignment – whereas most groups selected single novels, my partner and I opted to read a collection of short stories by none other than the notorious Dr. Seuss. Were I writing this essay on a “normal” book, I would be able to pose a question about the book itself and answer it in an ordinary sort of way. However, given the subject matter I have chosen, an essay on an individual book, though possible, would be a very tricky thing to do. It would be wiser, and probably easier, to respond to the man himself. My decision to respond to the man himself makes many more choices – what facet of Dr. Seuss shall I ask myself questions about? I think

Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, is perhaps one of the most beloved children’s authors of the twentieth century. Although he is most famous as an author of children’s books, Geisel was also a political cartoonist, advertisement designer, and film director (Kaplan). He used the power of imagination to produce unforgettable children’s books and helped solve the problem of illiteracy among America’s children. By using his experiences in life as a foundation for most of his books, Theodor Geisel created a unique writing style that incorporated various elements and techniques, enabling his books to appeal to people of all ages.

In Miranda Fricker’s article Testimonial Injustice, she highlights the significant effects for the connection of ethics and epistemology. Ethics is one of the philosophies’ branches that asks the question, “What is a good life or how to live a good life?” Epistemology is the theory of philosophy that ask the questions, “What do you know?” and “How do you know it?” Fricker basically, combines the two subjects at the matter and produced the concept of epistemic injustice. According to Fricker, epistemic injustices comes in the form of testimonial injustice.

Philosophy is the careful study if the states of, validity, existence, and conduct. It comes from the Greek word, philosophia, which translates into “the love of wisdom”. Philosophy encompasses a vast range of topics and ever person, place, thing, and idea has its roots embedded in it. For the purpose of this paper, I will be only covering the branches of epistemology, metaphysics, and ethics. These branches serve as the building blocks for studying and teaching philosophy. While examining these building blocks, I will argue why philosophy should be studied.