“There is an old illusion. It is called good and evil.” (Friedrich Nietzsche) Despite dying over 50 years before Dr. Seuss’s story “The Cat in the Hat” was published, Friedrich’s words exemplify the relationship between the Cat and the Fish perfectly. On a rainy day with absolutely nothing to amuse themselves, The Cat in the Hat arrives to initiate some fun. The day is all fun and games until the house becomes a mess, much to the joy of the children’s pet fish. Luckily, the cat returns to help clean up the mess he has made. The cat is a provider of fun to the household, presenting to the children all the amusing things they can do despite the rain outside. Portraying the Tybalt to the Cat’s Benvolio, the fish acts as the buzzkill who constantly …show more content…
Instead of a simple activity like listening to music or reading, the Cat engages in a game he calls UP-UP-UP. As he starts to play the game, he explains “’I will not let you fall. I will hold you up high as I stand on a ball. With a book on one hand! And a cup on my hat!’” (Seuss 127) His intentions with the game are admirable, only wanting to amuse the children. Despite his heart being in the right place, his actions show a more rebellious, chaotic nature. The troublesome actions and movements in his game are masked in the playfulness and innocence of his motives. The Cat truly wants to just play games and bring these children some fun on this gloomy day. While the impending chaos is rather predictable, it isn’t until the Cat falls and the game is over that things become more black and white. The Fish who didn’t want to be a part of the game is now furious with the Cat, scolding, “’Now look what you did!’” and “You shook up our house’” (Seuss 133) As the game starts to fail and bring destruction about the house, the Cat’s actions truly become more menacing then they are worth. With the Fish reinforcing the idea that everything the Cat is doing is wrong, even his charisma and kind-hearted nature can’t purify his actions. In his adventure, the line between right and wrong starts to
Dr. Seuss, also known as Theodore Seuss, has written many poems as well as short stories, and is considered one of the greatest children’s author in history. His silly stories are able to excite children in ways that make them want read. His Wife says,” Ted doesn’t sit down to write for children. He writes to amuse himself;” Little do children know that often, in his stories, there is a lot of political undertone, a few examples include The Lorax, Yertle the Turtle, The Sneethces, and The Butter Battle Book. If you were to really critique some of his books or poems, you might see that some of his themes wouldn’t seem to pertain to children. But what he’s doing, is hoping that they will understand the main idea of the story enough that it challenges them to stand against the crowd of judgment and evil. Take notice of the issues around them, and make a change. He feels that they deserve to know about the issues, just as much as adults do. He is showing them early on, telling them that they do not need adults to make a difference.
He teaches the kid what to do in order to successfully reel in a large, beautiful fish. Ironically, the narrator is the one who learns from the kid in the end. At the beginning of the story, everything is described negatively, from the description of the kid as a “lumpy little guy with baggy shorts” to his “stupid-looking ’50s-style wrap-around sunglasses” and “beat-up rod”(152). Through his encounter with the boy, the narrator is able to see life in a different way, most notable from how he describes the caught tarpon as heavy, silvery white, and how it also has beautiful red fins (154). Through the course of the story, the narrator’s pessimistic attitude changes to an optimistic one, and this change reveals how inspiring this exchange between two strangers is. This story as a whole reveals that learning also revolves around interactions between other people, not only between people and their natural surroundings and
Timothy Brook discusses in his book the aspects of world trade during the 17th century and how through the process of globalization, how regions became as interconnected as we know of today. Most people tend to have this conceptualized idea of what globalization is as well as its process. Throughout my educational career, globalization has always been portrayed as big businesses working together providing different goods and services worldwide. In other words, globalization simply involves big, fortune 500-esque companies and has no involvement from anyone else. In the text, however, Brook gives a different interpretation and does so by examining six different paintings by Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer. Instead of focusing primarily on the obvious aspects of each painting, Brook draws the readers’ attention to a variety of intricate details and provides insight for all of them. This helps support his belief that globalization can be traced back to the events of the 17th century and had contributions from several individuals.
After Louie catches an Albatross and successfully uses the meat as bait, the narrator describes an idea that Louie hopes will solve their hunger problem in the absence of bait. After creating a device out of the fishing line and hooks, Louie is able to catch the first pilot fish he sees. This instance reveals Louie’s extreme resourcefulness. Using pure creativity, Louie is able to temporarily solve a seemingly unsolvable problem. In a situation wherein having bait is dependent on nature, Louie flips the dependence onto himself.
...m the “battered and venerable and homely” fish is now a decorated war hero who has fought many battles. The speaker always had respect for the fish but at the end her admiration is so outstanding that she feels obligated to honor it. The final declaration is, “And I let the fish go” (76). This is the culmination of all the previous dialogue and shows the speaker’s utmost respect for the fish and how it would be inhumane of her to kill it.
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 perhaps I first need to give some brief biographical information on the man to understand the background he’s coming from. In 1904, Theodore Seuss Geisel was born in Massachusetts, USA. I have not been able to find too much documentation about his childhood, but he certainly did not come from a terribly poor or terribly unsuccessful family… in fact, his family had owned a local brewery in their home town of Springfield for several years. Ever since his childhood, Geisel had dabbled in the fields we all know and love him for today… for instance, during bible recitals, he read the verses to a rhythm and often in rhyme. In High School he wrote many short essays and drew cartoons for the school paper, and even then he had adopted a pseudonym for himself – “Pete the Pessimist”. Upon graduation, Geisel began studying literature at Oxford university, as his original intent was to become an educator… even then, he punctuated his time at Oxford with his job editing and contributing to the “Jack-O-Lantern”, ...
Which shows that the cat didn’t know what to
Some superstitions and myths, for example on Friday the Thirteenth, view black cats or cats in general, as a symbol for mischievousness or bad luck. The Cat in the story causes many discrepancies with the normal lifestyle of the children, by wrecking their possessions. ""Now look what you did!" Said the fish to the car.… You should not be here when our mother is not." (25). The Cat defiled the norms of the children's lives, as they found the Cat's fun abnormal and chaotic. The mellow lifestyle of the children had been transformed by the presence of the Cat and his tricks and games, causing them to not only be disturbed by his tactics but also go repel away from
The story of the guppy fish, where the brothers “dammed it and smashed it,” uncovers the violent nature of this aggressive boy (21). Using violence to overcome grief is common. People that use this way want to put their pain on other living organisms, so that the other being can feel their pain. Also, the less hostile brother’s perspective on their killing explicates his guilt, compared to the other brother, who does not appear to feel much remorse. The
The anecdote is used as a tool for the reader to understand how death is necessary for all life on earth; the cat is a typical creature motivated by innate instincts, demonstrating one component of a
...at the hands of his master. The mutilation of its eye, hanging it to death from a tree and killing his wife, which had shown the cat love. There are two interpretations you can take away from this story, the logic of guilt or supernatural fantasy. Which conclusion will you take?
He should not be about. He should not be here When your mother is out." This action by the fish shows the audience that the Fish is attempting to keep the children from potential harm. Fish can't talk but kids can.
The image of the cat clawing at the reeds stands out the most. A person reading this poem can envision the cat clawing the reeds and screaming as the young boys hold it under the water bringing the cat closer and closer to death with each passing moment. The purpose that the young girl tries to explain is that she understands the way young boys are and that they do not love anything.
...nizes the fish because, just like the fish, people fight daily battles to survive in life. This humanization of the fish enables the speaker to relate and respect him, and therefore, ultimately leads to his release.
Edgar Allan Poe's classic tale, "The Black Cat," is a disturbing story that delves into the contrasts between reality and fantasy, insanity and logic, and life and death. To decipher one distinct meaning presented in this story undermines the brilliance of Poe's writing. Multiple meanings can be derived from "The Black Cat," which lends itself perfectly to many approaches of critical interpretation.