Dr. Seuss and Philosophy

Jacob M. Held

doi:10.5771/9781442203129

Summary

Since Theodor Geisel published his first children's book in 1937 under the pseudonym Dr. Seuss, children and adults alike have been captivated by the charming and laconic tales of whimsical characters and imaginative worlds. But Dr. Seuss' stories are more than just catchy poems; they often wrestle with serious philosophical and moral dilemmas, whether it is Horton discovering the very essence of life or the Lorax teaching us about morality. Dr. Seuss and Philosophy explores philosophical concepts such as the nature of the good life in Oh, the Places You'll Go!, the nature of knowledge in McElligot's Pool, postmodernity in On Beyond Zebra, business and the environment in The Lorax,and moral character in How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, among many others. Anyone who loves Dr. Seuss or is interested in philosophy will find this book to be intriguing and enlightening.

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Bibliographic data

Copyright year: 2011
ISBN-Print: 978-1-4422-0311-2
ISBN-Online: 978-1-4422-0312-9
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham
Language: English
Pages: 260
Product type: Edited Book

1. Contents No access
2. Preface No access
3. Acknowledgments No access
4. Editor’s Note No access
5. Unsettled Meddling: An Introduction in Verse No access
CHAPTER ONE: Oh, the Places You’ll Go! The Examined, Happy Life No access Pages 1 - 14
CHAPTER TWO: My Troubles Are Going to Have Troubles with Me: Schopenhauer,Pessimism, and Nietzsche No access Pages 15 - 28
CHAPTER THREE: Gertrude McFuzz Should’ve Read Marx, or Sneetches of the World Unite No access Pages 29 - 40
CHAPTER FOUR: Socratic Seuss: Intellectual Integrity and Truth-Orientation No access Pages 41 - 52
CHAPTER FIVE: Neither Here, nor There, nor Anywhere? No access Pages 53 - 64
CHAPTER SIX: McElligot’s Pool: Epistemology (with Fish!) No access Pages 65 - 78
CHAPTER SEVEN: On Beyond Modernity, or Conrad and a Postmodern Alphabet No access Pages 79 - 92
CHAPTER EIGHT: From There to Here, from Here to There, Diversity Is Everywhere No access Pages 93 - 102
CHAPTER NINE: What Would You Do If Your Mother Asked You? A Brief Introduction to Ethics No access Pages 103 - 118
CHAPTER TEN: Horton Hears You, Too! Seuss and Kant on Respecting Persons No access Pages 119 - 132
CHAPTER ELEVEN: Pragmatist Ethics with John Dewey, Horton, and the Lorax No access Pages 133 - 146
CHAPTER TWELVE: The Grinch’s Change of Heart: Whodunit? No access Pages 147 - 158
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: Thidwick the Big-Hearted Bearer of Property Rights No access Pages 159 - 166
CHAPTER FOUR T E E N: Rebellion in Sala-ma-Sond: The Social Contract and a Turtle Named Mack No access Pages 167 - 178
CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Whose Egg Is It, Really? Property Rights and Distributive Justice No access Pages 179 - 190
CHAPTER SIX T E E NL It’s Not Personal . . . It’s Just Bizzyneuss: Business Ethics, the Company, and Its Stakeholders No access Pages 191 - 206
CHAPTER SEVEN T E E N: Speaking for Business, Speaking for Trees: Business and Environment in The Lorax No access Pages 207 - 218
CHAPTER EIGHT E E N: Dr. Seuss Meets Philosophical Aesthetics No access Pages 219 - 230
Notes No access Pages 231 - 248
Index No access Pages 249 - 256
The Menagerie: Author Biographies No access Pages 257 - 260