http://www.maggiewilliamswanderer.com/2009/04/dr-seuss-sneetches/ Thu, 12 Jan 2012 01:06:49 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 http://www.maggiewilliamswanderer.com/2009/04/dr-seuss-sneetches/comment-page-1/#comment-6470 Thom Disher Sat, 27 Nov 2010 23:10:13 +0000 http://maggiewilliams.wordpress.com/?p=3609#comment-6470 I have a theory building in my mind where I see only two distinct human types. The black species and the white species have been evolving from the beginning of time together. Of all the books and stories I have read that touches on this subject, from Plato, Socrates, Descartes, Hume, Christian writings, history from several periods and sources, the one book that stands most in my mind was one I read to all three of my own children over and over again. Dr. Seuss gave us such wonderful, colourful stories that not only my children enjoyed, but gave me reason to re think some of my own values and priorities in life. The story I was referencing would be the Dr. Seuss book tiles the “Sneetches” where there were two types of Sneetches, ones with stars on their bellies, and ones that did not have stars on their bellies. Each treated the other with only contempt and prejudice, until one day a con man comes along with a machine that can put stars on the bellies of those without for a price. Business was good, so he took his machine to the ones with stars and for a price, could cover up the stars allowing them to live among the starless Sneetches undetected. You can see where this is going, and soon there were so many fakes, that no one knew who anyone was anymore including themselves. The warring ceased, con Sneetch and his machine was sent away and all the Sneetches soon understood that there really is only one kind of Sneetch after all. Short term harmony and peace was realized. So many writers will only guide us down a path of some kind of enlightenment with theories and arguments that will allow us to form an ever evolving and changing theory on one small insignificant fragment of life, what was Dr. Seuss trying to tell us with the story of the “Sneetches”, and where in the harmony and in the nature of life does the meaning make a difference? Please do not be of the mind that I have missed the intended message the story was attempting to convey. I do understand that the most basic rule in nature among all of its creatures is to live in harmony with those of your own species. We humans need a constant reminder of this most basic innate instinct found inherently in all of the other species on this planet. What was missing in that story, so very well narrated and illustrated, was the fact that both the “Sneetches” with stars, and those without were all yellow unlike us humans that come in such a wide variety of colours and shapes. Perhaps the story would have carried more meaning to our children if some of the Sneetches were black, red or green as well as having stars or not. But now, I have taken the book to a level that I am sure that Dr. Seuss did not intend the book to go and without attempting to sound like one of those conspiracy theories of the paranoid it may not have been an oversight to exclude the “Sneetches” of different colours or cultures. After all the human way is to find harmony amongst those of us who share the same inheritance, then only will we try to find harmony amongst others of the same species, but who may have different cultures, belief systems, traits that we do not understand. Our children have to start some where, but why then do expend so much energy as our children reach maturity to undo those valuable lessons we taught our children in the infant stages through such wonderful stories as Dr. Seuss gave us. I have a theory building in my mind where I see only two distinct human types. The black species and the white species have been evolving from the beginning of time together. Of all the books and stories I have read that touches on this subject, from Plato, Socrates, Descartes, Hume, Christian writings, history from several periods and sources, the one book that stands most in my mind was one I read to all three of my own children over and over again.
Dr. Seuss gave us such wonderful, colourful stories that not only my children enjoyed, but gave me reason to re think some of my own values and priorities in life.
The story I was referencing would be the Dr. Seuss book tiles the “Sneetches” where there were two types of Sneetches, ones with stars on their bellies, and ones that did not have stars on their bellies. Each treated the other with only contempt and prejudice, until one day a con man comes along with a machine that can put stars on the bellies of those without for a price. Business was good, so he took his machine to the ones with stars and for a price, could cover up the stars allowing them to live among the starless Sneetches undetected.
You can see where this is going, and soon there were so many fakes, that no one knew who anyone was anymore including themselves. The warring ceased, con Sneetch and his machine was sent away and all the Sneetches soon understood that there really is only one kind of Sneetch after all. Short term harmony and peace was realized.
So many writers will only guide us down a path of some kind of enlightenment with theories and arguments that will allow us to form an ever evolving and changing theory on one small insignificant fragment of life, what was Dr. Seuss trying to tell us with the story of the “Sneetches”, and where in the harmony and in the nature of life does the meaning make a difference?
Please do not be of the mind that I have missed the intended message the story was attempting to convey. I do understand that the most basic rule in nature among all of its creatures is to live in harmony with those of your own species. We humans need a constant reminder of this most basic innate instinct found inherently in all of the other species on this planet. What was missing in that story, so very well narrated and illustrated, was the fact that both the “Sneetches” with stars, and those without were all yellow unlike us humans that come in such a wide variety of colours and shapes. Perhaps the story would have carried more meaning to our children if some of the Sneetches were black, red or green as well as having stars or not.
But now, I have taken the book to a level that I am sure that Dr. Seuss did not intend the book to go and without attempting to sound like one of those conspiracy theories of the paranoid it may not have been an oversight to exclude the “Sneetches” of different colours or cultures. After all the human way is to find harmony amongst those of us who share the same inheritance, then only will we try to find harmony amongst others of the same species, but who may have different cultures, belief systems, traits that we do not understand. Our children have to start some where, but why then do expend so much energy as our children reach maturity to undo those valuable lessons we taught our children in the infant stages through such wonderful stories as Dr. Seuss gave us.

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