Comparing The Little Boy And The Old Man By Shel Silverstein

The poems “The Little Blue Engine, “The Little Boy and the Old Man”, and “Ladies First” were all written by shel silverstein. Shel Silverstein attempted to break social norms to promote fun and imagination in the children who read his poems. Shel Silverstein used his poetry to challenge adults view on children’s literature His poetry deals with difficult subject matter with powerful imagery to convey a message to youth and adults. Silverstein’s poetry was written for the enjoyment of children. In addition he didn’t want them to conform to society.

Shel Silverstein used his poetry to challenge adults view of children’s literature in the poem, “The Little Blue engine”. The whole point of the poem is to show that believing in yourself isn’t

"Though some adults may be appalled at Silverstein's handling of this enshrined story, many more will appreciate his willingness to deal so summarily with the debunking of this "truth"”(MacDonald, “The Weirdness of Shel Silverstein”). MacDonald is showing that Silverstein's poems purposely challenge the narrative adults have been telling children by telling the reality as it is. “The Range of humor in evidence in the books makes them appealing to a wide range of school - aged children”(MacDonald, “The Weirdness of Shel Silverstein”). Shel Silverstein wrote his books for children to enjoy, not for adults to critique. The lesson is to educate children so they aren’t swayed by society. In addition to teaching young children about success, he also parallelled the treatment of children to the treatment of elderly

Throughout the poem, a little girl named Pamela cuts, and always tries to be first at everything because “ladies first”. “Pamela Purse yelled, “Ladies first,”Pushing in front of the ice cream line.Pamela Purse yelled, “Ladies first,”Grabbing the ketchup at dinnertime.Climbing on the morning bus She’d shove right by all of us And there’d be a tiff or a fight or a fuss When Pamela Purse yelled, “Ladies first.”(ll.1-8). Silverstein is highlighting the fact that allowing a lady to go first is polite but can be very obnoxious if taken to extremes. “A cannibal known as Fry-‘Em-Up Dan, Who sat on his throne in a bib so grand With a lick of his lips and a fork in his hand, As he tried to decide who’d be first in the pan- From back of the line, in that shrill voice of hers, Pamela Purse yelled, “Ladies first.”(Ladies first.”(ll.14-19). These lines show Pamela’s obsession of going first as the girl is more focussed on being first then being eaten by a cannibal. This book was banned in several school districts due to its controversial nature. These school districts are just proving his point that people need to be open to important lessons. Many critics agree with Silverstein’s controversial