For those of you who are not familiar with Dr Seuss’ work, it is about time you get in touch with your inner childhood and go watch The Lorax, the movie adapted based on his book. And since it is a Dr Seuss book, expect the movie to be very close to the story in the book itself.
A little bit about the writer, Dr Seuss. He was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books. He published 46 children's books, which were often characterized by imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of trisyllabic meter. His most celebrated books include the bestselling Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat and How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
Anyway, what caught me is the way he wrote his books. It is never set somewhere in this world. It’s always set in a who’sville or thweepville or some funny sounding area that is supposedly out of this world but the issues discussed are so relatable, that you could have sworn he was talking about the world in general.
The Lorax starts off almost in a similar way the Puck ends Midsummer Night’s Dream- with a monologue! In fact, there was some very uncanny resemblance between the Puck and the Lorax- Mischievous, supposedly cute and very endearing! It is of no wonder, the characters struck a chord with the audience immediately.
The Lorax basically is about a boy who invented a kind of clothing that is made of special cotton from a tree. He began to sell his line of clothing which resulted to mass production and mass deforestation, causing the animals in the forest to lose their habitat, and there was nothing Lorax, the guardian of the forest, could do. Sounds familiar?
A little bit about the writer, Dr Seuss. He was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books. He published 46 children's books, which were often characterized by imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of trisyllabic meter. His most celebrated books include the bestselling Green Eggs and Ham, The Cat in the Hat and How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
Anyway, what caught me is the way he wrote his books. It is never set somewhere in this world. It’s always set in a who’sville or thweepville or some funny sounding area that is supposedly out of this world but the issues discussed are so relatable, that you could have sworn he was talking about the world in general.
The Lorax starts off almost in a similar way the Puck ends Midsummer Night’s Dream- with a monologue! In fact, there was some very uncanny resemblance between the Puck and the Lorax- Mischievous, supposedly cute and very endearing! It is of no wonder, the characters struck a chord with the audience immediately.
The Lorax basically is about a boy who invented a kind of clothing that is made of special cotton from a tree. He began to sell his line of clothing which resulted to mass production and mass deforestation, causing the animals in the forest to lose their habitat, and there was nothing Lorax, the guardian of the forest, could do. Sounds familiar?
Invention of paper= mass production=mass deforestation.
What I like about the whole story is how The Lorax, despite being an omnipotent character, was not able to stop the deforestation.
Instead he left a rock with the word “unless” inscribed on it, which is a good message to impart to everyone...
Unless someone cared, deforestation will continue and we will continue to lose our forest at an alarming rate.
And I have to give ten thumbs up to the song composer for The Lorax. Unlike other Dr Seuss movies, The Lorax has a very catchy soundtrack that is more groovy, making it more relatable to today’s context.
On the whole, the movie has successfully brought across the themes and messages without sounding too preachy about deforestation. But whether it was impactful enough to bring about a change in our lives, we will just have to wait and see…for at least the next six months.
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