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The Lorax, a la Shmoop. For a children's author, Dr. Seuss took on

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some pretty heavy subject matter.

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Especially for a guy who routinely used words like "gruvvulous" and "miff-muffered moof."

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In The Lorax, he takes on the issue of the environment and his message is loud and clear...

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Oh wait.

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What message was Dr. Seuss trying to convey?

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One possibility is that Seuss was trying to point a "you're-killing-the-environment" finger

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at big business.

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Keep in mind when the Lorax was written.

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These days, a lot of people make an effort to stay "green."

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But back in the early '70s, being environmentally conscious was...weird.

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Smog had enveloped cities...

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...a river in Ohio had literally caught on fire...

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We even needed a giant owl to remind us not to litter.

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So, when "The Lorax" was published in 1971, it definitely struck a nerve.

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A lot of this may have to do with the portrayal of the Once-ler.

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The Once-ler set up shop and hooked up all of his family and friends with sweet gigs...

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knitting thneeds.

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His only real desire was to "bigger" his business.

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And we all know how that turned out.

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So does the Once-ler represent capitalism at its greediest?

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Was Dr. Seuss's main message that industry is basically destructive?

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Or maybe it's less about the Once-ler and more about the Lorax.

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After all, the Lorax was not very fun to be around.

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Sure, he had a noble cause.

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But let's face it: he was not the sort to try and meet the Once-ler halfway on anything.

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All he did was lecture.

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It's no wonder the Once-ler kept tuning him out...all he heard was "bad, bad, bad."

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And that was the common perception of environmentalists back in 1971: all they could do is nay-say.

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So maybe Dr. Seuss is also pointing a finger at people who talk a big game, but never actually

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do anything to clean up the environment.

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But there is one more character...and one more possibility.

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In the end, paradise is lost, and the Once-ler reveals that he's in possession of one last

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Truffula seed.

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He is clearly troubled by his previous deeds.

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Even so, he doesn't plant the last seed himself, but instead passes the responsibility to some

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kid he just met!

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The Once-ler got his 15 cents and got to wash his hands of the whole affair.

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So maybe that's the book's main message: it's up to you, young reader, to clean up this

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environmental mess. It's clear that Dr. Seuss was trying to send

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a message about the environment...but what was it?

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Was he trying to blame big business for environmental issues?

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Was he arguing that environmental activism takes more than just lecturing?

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Or was he just saying that it is up to the next generation to, well, fix everything?

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Shmoop amongst yourselves.

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