http://petcaretips.net/turtles-tortoises-mythology-religion.html Acess January 20, 2010
This source describes the symbolism of turtle's in different regions of the world. It gives an overview of what they mean to different cultures, and the stories in which they appear. It was useful to our research in providing a wide variety of views of the turtle and providing a base of stories and myths to research further. Many of the meanings associated with the turtle on this site related directly to our analogies of Yertle the Turtle.
Chevalier,Jean. Gheerbrant, Alain. Buchanan-Brown, John. .The Penguin Dictionary of Symbols Penguin Books, 1996. Access Jan 22, 2010.
The book is a detailed symbolism dictionary, that elaborates on the meanings and origin of symbols from mythology and everyday life. It provided insight into the symbolism of tortotises, and the information was used in the body paragraph of the essays. It examines a varitey of symbols, providing indepth information of the various topics.
Tames, Robert. Fascism: Ideas of the Modern World.Italy, 2001. Access: January 25, 2010.
This book describes fascism in the modern world, and world war two. It refers to individuals, such as Hitler, who believed in the political movement. Fascism offered clear definitions and ideas relating to the functions of fascism that were usefu when writing the essay portion of the assignment, and to determine words to use in the political cartoon.
-Nina
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Friday, February 5, 2010
The Bibliography
Bibliography
Yertle, Hitler, and Dr. Seuss by Richard H. Minear, professor of history at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and author of Dr. Seuss Goes to War. From Your Favourite Seuss, published 2004.
From the book Your Favourite Seuss, which contains thirteen Dr. Seuss stories and essays concerning each of them, the foundation of the project was set. From the essay by Richard H. Minear before Dr. Seuss's Yertle the Turtle, we discovered the message and intention behind Yertle's character: Yertle the Turtle is Adolf Hitler.
In the essay, Minear explains Dr. Seuss's clever way to describe fascism through his artwork and stories. He recounts how Dr. Seuss had originally drew Yertle with Hitler's infamous moustache, although it was later removed. Minear also makes reference to Seuss's political cartoons from the second world war, one of which showed a 'V for Victory', prefiguring the tower of turtles in Yertle the Turtle.
Minear's essay gets gives a general overview of Seuss's intentions as a teacher: in tolerance (The Sneeches), in environmental awareness (The Lorax), again the nuclear arms race (The Butter Battle Book) and more. He also brings to life Seuss's words again, something to be kept in mind while researching and writing about Dr. Seuss's work: “Outside of my Beginner Books, I never write for children. I write for people.”
The Doctrine of Fascism – Benito Mussolini co-written by Giovanni Gentile, translation from Fascism Doctrine and Institutions, by Benito Mussolini
This article, a translation from a text published in 1935, is a direct representation of Benito Mussolini's views on fascism. It gave an inside idea of the workings of a fascist government and the the expected standards of the public. This article was researched for information on a fascist nation for the essay. Mussolini's government, like Hitler's, was an example of complete power in the hands of the one at the top of the stack, so to speak. Mussolini's views of how the political system should work is directly mirrored in Yertle the Turtle. And like King Yertle, Mussolini and his ideas displayed in this article ended up in the mud.
-Maddie
Yertle, Hitler, and Dr. Seuss by Richard H. Minear, professor of history at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and author of Dr. Seuss Goes to War. From Your Favourite Seuss, published 2004.
From the book Your Favourite Seuss, which contains thirteen Dr. Seuss stories and essays concerning each of them, the foundation of the project was set. From the essay by Richard H. Minear before Dr. Seuss's Yertle the Turtle, we discovered the message and intention behind Yertle's character: Yertle the Turtle is Adolf Hitler.
In the essay, Minear explains Dr. Seuss's clever way to describe fascism through his artwork and stories. He recounts how Dr. Seuss had originally drew Yertle with Hitler's infamous moustache, although it was later removed. Minear also makes reference to Seuss's political cartoons from the second world war, one of which showed a 'V for Victory', prefiguring the tower of turtles in Yertle the Turtle.
Minear's essay gets gives a general overview of Seuss's intentions as a teacher: in tolerance (The Sneeches), in environmental awareness (The Lorax), again the nuclear arms race (The Butter Battle Book) and more. He also brings to life Seuss's words again, something to be kept in mind while researching and writing about Dr. Seuss's work: “Outside of my Beginner Books, I never write for children. I write for people.”
The Doctrine of Fascism – Benito Mussolini co-written by Giovanni Gentile, translation from Fascism Doctrine and Institutions, by Benito Mussolini
This article, a translation from a text published in 1935, is a direct representation of Benito Mussolini's views on fascism. It gave an inside idea of the workings of a fascist government and the the expected standards of the public. This article was researched for information on a fascist nation for the essay. Mussolini's government, like Hitler's, was an example of complete power in the hands of the one at the top of the stack, so to speak. Mussolini's views of how the political system should work is directly mirrored in Yertle the Turtle. And like King Yertle, Mussolini and his ideas displayed in this article ended up in the mud.
-Maddie
Essay
Hitler the Turtle
In his story Yertle the Turtle, Theodor Geisel attempts to condemn fascism and autocracy, exposing them through the use of symbolism and a striking plot line. Theodor Seuss Geisel, more commonly known as Dr. Seuss, is known the centrist views displayed in his many editorial cartoons and stories. He regularly criticizes the political extremes in his publications, and Yertle the Turtle is no exception. Through the use of symbolism and metaphors he conveys Yertle as a menace to society and criticizes autocracy and its values. Yertle the Turtle is more than a story: like many of his books, it is an expression of the Geisel's opinions concerning command societies, in which he scorns fascism.
Fascism can be recognized historically as the attempt to organize the entire population of a country into a disciplined force, following one all powerful leader, (Tames), such as Yertle, the turtle, who dictates the others in the pond. At his command, they are forced to do anything to satisfy his will. They feel no joy in granting his wishes, as displayed by their facial expressions and lack of enthusiasm. One average turtle, Mack, voices the discomforts of those at the bottom of the pile. He tells Yertle that he doesn't “like to complain, but down here below, we are feeling great pain. I know, up on top you are seeing great sights, but down here at the bottom we, too, should have rights.” (Yertle the Turtle) The turtles are, in fact, reminiscent of the slaves in the United States prior to the Civil War, kept in check by their lack of motivation to resort to bloodshed in a coup. Geisel's word choice inspires us to feel resentment toward Yertle, the turtle king bellowing at the other turtles in the pond until his orders are met. Although Geisel does not explicitly say it, the ways his illustrations and diction work cause us to view Yertle in a darker light, causing us to rejoice when he is quite literally deposed by the average turtle.
The turtle, seamlessly woven into Geisel's Yertle the Turtle to enhance the representation and horror of fascism, is an ancient symbol, appearing in myths originating from various parts of the world. In many cultures, the turtle is depicted as carrying the world on its back (Peng). In Yertle the Turtle the turtles are stacked on each other's backs, the goal being to expand the world which Yertle attempts to govern. The expansion of Yertle's world relies on the turtle’s abilities to support him, and the increasing request for the turtles is reminiscent of the increasing demands Hitler placed on his own people during World War II, and of the heavy weight piling onto those lower down the tower. In a Mongol myth, the golden turtle which supports the world is the last thing that the sun burns, after everything else is shriveled (PEN). The agonized turtle rolls onto its back, and its death represents the end of the world (PEN). Similarly, when they are no longer protected by their once established community's involvement, fascist autocrats fall on their backs. The goals of achieving glory and perfection, as attempted by Hitler during the Holocaust, resulted in chaos and destruction. Hitler and Mussolini were both seen, at one time, to be great leaders with admirable plans. The turtle's mythological association with the marvels of heaven, and the horrors of hell (PENG) mirrors this, as their reputations are altered to less flattering perspectives when their intentions are exposed for as the horrors they are. Any individuals or institutions opposing to the visions of this revolutionary dictatorship and crushed (TAMES.) The character Mack, the turtle at the bottom of Yertle's “throne” represents the opposition to fascism. Mack is the only turtle to speak out in protest against Yertle, and he endures the greatest suffering since he is at the bottom of the pile. Dr. Seuss uses the turtle brilliantly to illustrate the results of a fascist movement.
Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories has a subtle intention, a cause that the Geisel had in mind from the start: a stab at fascism. Merriam Webster's Mobile Dictionary defines autocracy as a political theory favouring unlimited authority by a single person. Yertle's leadership falls under the given definition. With complete power in his grasp, his suppression of opposition is made obvious by the harsh treatment he administers, telling Mack to “hush up your mouth! You’ve no right to talk to the world’s highest turtle.” With Yertle as a representation of fascism, we can soon make all the connections necessary to find Geisel’s disapproval stashed in the text. Yertle is seen as a hostile character, mistreating his fellow turtles and forcing them into hard labour so that his “conquest” may grow. Thus, if Yertle’s rule is a fascist leadership, and he is represented as a hostile character, then it leads one to believe that fascism is a hostile form of government. His greed and thirst for power lead the reader to believe that fascism is a horrible, malicious way to rule a state. Geisel’s ending lines, “And the turtles, of course... all the turtles are free. As turtles and, maybe, all creatures should be.” (Yertle the Turtle) concludes his opinions of fascism. Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories shows Geisel’s beliefs about autocracy and other forms of authoritarian government.
Yertle is a perfect example of Western society’s worst nightmare: a dictator with no principles who is unafraid to stake the lives and well-being of his nation in order to achieve the desired results. He takes the turtle society, symbolized as guardians of the earth, and brings them to nothing more than an unsteady stack in the sky. Yertle, based off of the images of Mussolini and Hitler, and it is obvious that he represents the fascist form of government. Yertle is more than a dictator; he is a destroyer of worlds, as Geisel would have us think of fascism.
- written by Erik McGowan.
- edited and written by Nina Danielle
In his story Yertle the Turtle, Theodor Geisel attempts to condemn fascism and autocracy, exposing them through the use of symbolism and a striking plot line. Theodor Seuss Geisel, more commonly known as Dr. Seuss, is known the centrist views displayed in his many editorial cartoons and stories. He regularly criticizes the political extremes in his publications, and Yertle the Turtle is no exception. Through the use of symbolism and metaphors he conveys Yertle as a menace to society and criticizes autocracy and its values. Yertle the Turtle is more than a story: like many of his books, it is an expression of the Geisel's opinions concerning command societies, in which he scorns fascism.
Fascism can be recognized historically as the attempt to organize the entire population of a country into a disciplined force, following one all powerful leader, (Tames), such as Yertle, the turtle, who dictates the others in the pond. At his command, they are forced to do anything to satisfy his will. They feel no joy in granting his wishes, as displayed by their facial expressions and lack of enthusiasm. One average turtle, Mack, voices the discomforts of those at the bottom of the pile. He tells Yertle that he doesn't “like to complain, but down here below, we are feeling great pain. I know, up on top you are seeing great sights, but down here at the bottom we, too, should have rights.” (Yertle the Turtle) The turtles are, in fact, reminiscent of the slaves in the United States prior to the Civil War, kept in check by their lack of motivation to resort to bloodshed in a coup. Geisel's word choice inspires us to feel resentment toward Yertle, the turtle king bellowing at the other turtles in the pond until his orders are met. Although Geisel does not explicitly say it, the ways his illustrations and diction work cause us to view Yertle in a darker light, causing us to rejoice when he is quite literally deposed by the average turtle.
The turtle, seamlessly woven into Geisel's Yertle the Turtle to enhance the representation and horror of fascism, is an ancient symbol, appearing in myths originating from various parts of the world. In many cultures, the turtle is depicted as carrying the world on its back (Peng). In Yertle the Turtle the turtles are stacked on each other's backs, the goal being to expand the world which Yertle attempts to govern. The expansion of Yertle's world relies on the turtle’s abilities to support him, and the increasing request for the turtles is reminiscent of the increasing demands Hitler placed on his own people during World War II, and of the heavy weight piling onto those lower down the tower. In a Mongol myth, the golden turtle which supports the world is the last thing that the sun burns, after everything else is shriveled (PEN). The agonized turtle rolls onto its back, and its death represents the end of the world (PEN). Similarly, when they are no longer protected by their once established community's involvement, fascist autocrats fall on their backs. The goals of achieving glory and perfection, as attempted by Hitler during the Holocaust, resulted in chaos and destruction. Hitler and Mussolini were both seen, at one time, to be great leaders with admirable plans. The turtle's mythological association with the marvels of heaven, and the horrors of hell (PENG) mirrors this, as their reputations are altered to less flattering perspectives when their intentions are exposed for as the horrors they are. Any individuals or institutions opposing to the visions of this revolutionary dictatorship and crushed (TAMES.) The character Mack, the turtle at the bottom of Yertle's “throne” represents the opposition to fascism. Mack is the only turtle to speak out in protest against Yertle, and he endures the greatest suffering since he is at the bottom of the pile. Dr. Seuss uses the turtle brilliantly to illustrate the results of a fascist movement.
Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories has a subtle intention, a cause that the Geisel had in mind from the start: a stab at fascism. Merriam Webster's Mobile Dictionary defines autocracy as a political theory favouring unlimited authority by a single person. Yertle's leadership falls under the given definition. With complete power in his grasp, his suppression of opposition is made obvious by the harsh treatment he administers, telling Mack to “hush up your mouth! You’ve no right to talk to the world’s highest turtle.” With Yertle as a representation of fascism, we can soon make all the connections necessary to find Geisel’s disapproval stashed in the text. Yertle is seen as a hostile character, mistreating his fellow turtles and forcing them into hard labour so that his “conquest” may grow. Thus, if Yertle’s rule is a fascist leadership, and he is represented as a hostile character, then it leads one to believe that fascism is a hostile form of government. His greed and thirst for power lead the reader to believe that fascism is a horrible, malicious way to rule a state. Geisel’s ending lines, “And the turtles, of course... all the turtles are free. As turtles and, maybe, all creatures should be.” (Yertle the Turtle) concludes his opinions of fascism. Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories shows Geisel’s beliefs about autocracy and other forms of authoritarian government.
Yertle is a perfect example of Western society’s worst nightmare: a dictator with no principles who is unafraid to stake the lives and well-being of his nation in order to achieve the desired results. He takes the turtle society, symbolized as guardians of the earth, and brings them to nothing more than an unsteady stack in the sky. Yertle, based off of the images of Mussolini and Hitler, and it is obvious that he represents the fascist form of government. Yertle is more than a dictator; he is a destroyer of worlds, as Geisel would have us think of fascism.
- written by Erik McGowan.
- edited and written by Nina Danielle
Thursday, February 4, 2010
I'm weighing you down.
The essay is almost complete, save a concluding paragraph.
Citations need to be included, and the annotated bibliography complete.
Nina finished the editorial cartoon, and is quite pleased with the caption she resolved on.
"You're not holding me up, I'm weighing you down!"
Says the fascist leader, perched on top of a human tower built of the positive traits of democracy. They are tired. Weak, and suffering under the weight.
Nina Nesdoly
Citations need to be included, and the annotated bibliography complete.
Nina finished the editorial cartoon, and is quite pleased with the caption she resolved on.
"You're not holding me up, I'm weighing you down!"
Says the fascist leader, perched on top of a human tower built of the positive traits of democracy. They are tired. Weak, and suffering under the weight.
Nina Nesdoly
Up it goes...
Having revised the essay draft from Erik and adding in a paragraph about symbolism, Nina has been rather enjoying making the political cartoon.
Admitedly, it is extemely time consuming.
Trying to make cartoon people whose faces are perfect circles look like they are in pain under a great weight is not easy.
The essay looks very good. A little more work on the annotated bibliography, a couple more edits, and a caption for the cartoon, and Nina should be done...
Nina Nesdoly
Admitedly, it is extemely time consuming.
Trying to make cartoon people whose faces are perfect circles look like they are in pain under a great weight is not easy.
The essay looks very good. A little more work on the annotated bibliography, a couple more edits, and a caption for the cartoon, and Nina should be done...
Nina Nesdoly
Monday, February 1, 2010
Crunch time
Back at school after the long break.
Erik has been working on the essay. The thesis statement looks good, and the paragraphs are falling into place. Just have to tie up a few loose ends before it can begin the editing process. Everyone is hard at work, and the project should be finished quite quickly. Here's to the last mile!
Erik McGowan
Erik has been working on the essay. The thesis statement looks good, and the paragraphs are falling into place. Just have to tie up a few loose ends before it can begin the editing process. Everyone is hard at work, and the project should be finished quite quickly. Here's to the last mile!
Erik McGowan
GO GO GO
Bucking down on the assignment!
Nina's writing her ideas about the symbolism in Yertle the Turtle, referring to a variety of written sources.
Two seats over, Erik is filling in the more politcal parts to the essay.
Tonight, Nina makes the graphics for the editorial cartoon, and tomorrow symbolism meets politics; an essay is born.
Through it all the annotated bibliography is rolling along.
Nina Nesdoly
Nina's writing her ideas about the symbolism in Yertle the Turtle, referring to a variety of written sources.
Two seats over, Erik is filling in the more politcal parts to the essay.
Tonight, Nina makes the graphics for the editorial cartoon, and tomorrow symbolism meets politics; an essay is born.
Through it all the annotated bibliography is rolling along.
Nina Nesdoly
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Ideas never die.
Yesterday Nina began working on paragraphs, or sections, to be included in the first draft of the essay. There's a lot of ideas, but some more sources are needed to back them up.
The annotated bibliography is also in progrees. Slightly.
Looking into some definitions, and expanding knowledge of the more basic terms associated with our arguments looks like the best place to start.
Nina decided to hit the books; onto the library website to order some books referring fascism, and a copy of Yerlte the Turtle, of course. She also intends to look up the turtle in her symbols dictionary tonight- why didn't she think of that sooner?
A website listing publications availible about people who experienced torture because of their opposition to fascism offered horror stories, of young deaths and abused people. Nina jumped when she thought she saw the word Turtle. It said Tutto, ad was the last word in the phrase: Che รจ Oggi il Popolo Italiano? Niente. Che Cosa Deve Essere? Tutto.
Translation: (This came from babel fish, so ignore the grammatical errors.) What is Today Italian Popolo? Nothing. What Must Be? All.
Another surprise, though Nina should have realised it. An idea cannot die, and fascism certainly did not. Nina found articles dating as recently as October, 2009, protesting fascism in the Southeast. They call them Nazi's.
They say that history is written by the victors.
We can beat a nation.
Not an ideal.
The annotated bibliography is also in progrees. Slightly.
Looking into some definitions, and expanding knowledge of the more basic terms associated with our arguments looks like the best place to start.
Nina decided to hit the books; onto the library website to order some books referring fascism, and a copy of Yerlte the Turtle, of course. She also intends to look up the turtle in her symbols dictionary tonight- why didn't she think of that sooner?
A website listing publications availible about people who experienced torture because of their opposition to fascism offered horror stories, of young deaths and abused people. Nina jumped when she thought she saw the word Turtle. It said Tutto, ad was the last word in the phrase: Che รจ Oggi il Popolo Italiano? Niente. Che Cosa Deve Essere? Tutto.
Translation: (This came from babel fish, so ignore the grammatical errors.) What is Today Italian Popolo? Nothing. What Must Be? All.
Another surprise, though Nina should have realised it. An idea cannot die, and fascism certainly did not. Nina found articles dating as recently as October, 2009, protesting fascism in the Southeast. They call them Nazi's.
They say that history is written by the victors.
We can beat a nation.
Not an ideal.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Cartoons on the brain
On the topic of the political cartoon:
Maddie did some research, as Nina mentioned, on animals that kill or banish the weak members of their species. No animal in particular seemed to match the specific description, but Maddie found that spiders will eat anything caught in their webs, including other spiders. This sparked Maddie's idea for a smaller spider caught in a web, surrounded by others of his kind. The small spider represents Mack, the opposition to Yertle, as well a the opposition towards Hitler's fascist nation.
Nina's idea of a hive of faceless worker bees being, in a way, brainwashed by their queen is a solid one.
Erik had the idea of a turtle burping in Hitler's face. Sometimes we idolize and worship him. <- Uhmmm Erik? Maddie wrote "sometimes we wonder about him." We worship. We idolize. In the extreme. Now Nina is correcting this blog post! (Her statement may or may not have been edited)
Mr. Blauer suggested a twist on the stack of turtles from the book. A stack of people, holding Hitler at the top. Each person in the stack represents some sort of freedom or idea that fascist nations such as Hitler's regime stand against. Maddie has so far created a sketch for this idea.
-Maddie Stephens
Edited by Erik McGowan
RE-EDITED BY NINA DANIELLE
Re-reedited by Erik
Maddie did some research, as Nina mentioned, on animals that kill or banish the weak members of their species. No animal in particular seemed to match the specific description, but Maddie found that spiders will eat anything caught in their webs, including other spiders. This sparked Maddie's idea for a smaller spider caught in a web, surrounded by others of his kind. The small spider represents Mack, the opposition to Yertle, as well a the opposition towards Hitler's fascist nation.
Nina's idea of a hive of faceless worker bees being, in a way, brainwashed by their queen is a solid one.
Erik had the idea of a turtle burping in Hitler's face. Sometimes we idolize and worship him. <- Uhmmm Erik? Maddie wrote "sometimes we wonder about him." We worship. We idolize. In the extreme. Now Nina is correcting this blog post! (Her statement may or may not have been edited)
Mr. Blauer suggested a twist on the stack of turtles from the book. A stack of people, holding Hitler at the top. Each person in the stack represents some sort of freedom or idea that fascist nations such as Hitler's regime stand against. Maddie has so far created a sketch for this idea.
-Maddie Stephens
Edited by Erik McGowan
RE-EDITED BY NINA DANIELLE
Re-reedited by Erik
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Queen Bees
Today, having lost access to the school network and internet services, the group had a good old fashioned meeting, involving a pen and paper, focused discussion between Nina and Maddie, and Erik clicking who-knows-what on his laptop. That said, his input was valuable.
The group discussed their research. Maddie has been looking at an assortment of political cartoons. Nina and Erik have been examining the metaphors and symbols within the book; Nina having followed the symbolism of turtles, Erik researching fascist societies.
Further discussion brought the group to some conclusions about the story.
-The pond is the original land where a fascist society in created.
-Yertle is Hitler. (In case you missed that part.)
-Mack, a turtle on the ver bottom of the tower, represents opposition. Any opposition in a fascist society is annihilated.
-Yertle orders more turtles to join the stack each time, as Hitler continued to raise his requirements.
-That the turtles stand on each other's backs in linked to the legend of a turtle holding the world on it's back. That's a lot of power.
-The other turtles in the story, excluding Yertle and Mack, are the Nazis, in that they accept orders, obeying Yertle, and express no views or opinions of their own. Their passivism represents their alignment to Yertle's beliefs, and possible alignment or willingness to be a part of his cause.
Our proposed thesis statement and essay topics include prooving how Dr.Seuss's Yertle the Turtle uses symbols and characters as metaphors to represent the mechanics of a fascist society.
This statement is subject to change.
On a funner topic;
the political cartoon.
We discussed possibly using bees, because they are all the same, working to build an orderly society.
Maddie intends to research other animals with similar routines to that of the bee in attempts to find a species that kills or banishes those who are born weak or with genetic mutations that the main ensemble finds undesirable.
And of course, there is the Queen bee; as in Hitler's fascist society, that demanded that people abandon personal beliefs and values in order to function as a country rather than an individual- someone is always in charge.
-Nina Danielle
Edited by Erik McGowan
The group discussed their research. Maddie has been looking at an assortment of political cartoons. Nina and Erik have been examining the metaphors and symbols within the book; Nina having followed the symbolism of turtles, Erik researching fascist societies.
Further discussion brought the group to some conclusions about the story.
-The pond is the original land where a fascist society in created.
-Yertle is Hitler. (In case you missed that part.)
-Mack, a turtle on the ver bottom of the tower, represents opposition. Any opposition in a fascist society is annihilated.
-Yertle orders more turtles to join the stack each time, as Hitler continued to raise his requirements.
-That the turtles stand on each other's backs in linked to the legend of a turtle holding the world on it's back. That's a lot of power.
-The other turtles in the story, excluding Yertle and Mack, are the Nazis, in that they accept orders, obeying Yertle, and express no views or opinions of their own. Their passivism represents their alignment to Yertle's beliefs, and possible alignment or willingness to be a part of his cause.
Our proposed thesis statement and essay topics include prooving how Dr.Seuss's Yertle the Turtle uses symbols and characters as metaphors to represent the mechanics of a fascist society.
This statement is subject to change.
On a funner topic;
the political cartoon.
We discussed possibly using bees, because they are all the same, working to build an orderly society.
Maddie intends to research other animals with similar routines to that of the bee in attempts to find a species that kills or banishes those who are born weak or with genetic mutations that the main ensemble finds undesirable.
And of course, there is the Queen bee; as in Hitler's fascist society, that demanded that people abandon personal beliefs and values in order to function as a country rather than an individual- someone is always in charge.
-Nina Danielle
Edited by Erik McGowan
Monday, January 11, 2010
Seeing doubles
Time to start think about the editorial cartoon. Symbols can easily be incorporated, but what message will we be attempting to depict through their usage? Dr. Seuss procliams Yertle (and Hitler) as facist dictators.
So let's look at fascism. Meriam-Webster dictionary describes it as;
1.: a political philosophy, movement, or regime (as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition
2 : a tendency toward or actual exercise of strong autocratic or dictatorial control
They were all alike.
Turtles pretty much look alike...
Though that wasn't a key point for Yertle the Turtle,
Could it be ours?
-Nina Danielle
Edited by Erik McGowan
So let's look at fascism. Meriam-Webster dictionary describes it as;
1.: a political philosophy, movement, or regime (as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition
2 : a tendency toward or actual exercise of strong autocratic or dictatorial control
They were all alike.
Turtles pretty much look alike...
Though that wasn't a key point for Yertle the Turtle,
Could it be ours?
-Nina Danielle
Edited by Erik McGowan
Saturday, January 9, 2010
One Bad Song...
January 9th
Maddie has just discovered a song by the Red Hot Chili Peppers called Yertle the Turtle. This song is really just the first half of the story set to 'music', a term Maddie is going to use lightly. Erik, however, might enjoy it. It seems unlikely that the Red Hot Chili Peppers actually finished the book because the song doesn't tell the end of King Yertle's adventure.
Maddie does not approve of the song, but enjoys the fact that the song exists at all.
-Maddie Stephens
Maddie has just discovered a song by the Red Hot Chili Peppers called Yertle the Turtle. This song is really just the first half of the story set to 'music', a term Maddie is going to use lightly. Erik, however, might enjoy it. It seems unlikely that the Red Hot Chili Peppers actually finished the book because the song doesn't tell the end of King Yertle's adventure.
Maddie does not approve of the song, but enjoys the fact that the song exists at all.
-Maddie Stephens
The Story of King Yertle
January 9th
Maddie would just like to give a bit of background on the story of Yertle the Turtle for those who are not familiar with Dr. Seuss's tale.
Yertle the Turtle is king of the pond. He sits on his stone, his throne, and rules over the turtles and the pond. But Yertle is the king of all he can see. "But I don't see enough! That's the trouble with me!" So Yertle calls to his subjects and orders a tower of turtles to be built for him so he can see further and expand his kingdom. As he is delighted by his gorwing power over the surrounding area, he insists that more turtles be stacked to create an even larger throne, despite the protest from Mack, a turtle stuck at the bottom of the pile. Yertle ignores the plea of the tired turtle and commands the participation of every single turtle in his quest to become higher than the moon. But as Yertle is about to give the order, Mack lets out a mighty burp that shakes the tower and sends the turtle king into the mud, which becomes the only thing he can see and so the only thing he may rule over.
"And the turtles, of course, all the turtles were free
as turtles and maybe all creatures should be"
-Maddie Stephens
Maddie would just like to give a bit of background on the story of Yertle the Turtle for those who are not familiar with Dr. Seuss's tale.
Yertle the Turtle is king of the pond. He sits on his stone, his throne, and rules over the turtles and the pond. But Yertle is the king of all he can see. "But I don't see enough! That's the trouble with me!" So Yertle calls to his subjects and orders a tower of turtles to be built for him so he can see further and expand his kingdom. As he is delighted by his gorwing power over the surrounding area, he insists that more turtles be stacked to create an even larger throne, despite the protest from Mack, a turtle stuck at the bottom of the pile. Yertle ignores the plea of the tired turtle and commands the participation of every single turtle in his quest to become higher than the moon. But as Yertle is about to give the order, Mack lets out a mighty burp that shakes the tower and sends the turtle king into the mud, which becomes the only thing he can see and so the only thing he may rule over.
"And the turtles, of course, all the turtles were free
as turtles and maybe all creatures should be"
-Maddie Stephens
Friday, January 8, 2010
Holding up Yertle
The blog is up! Previous posts were filled in, and Nina had fun pressing every button she could find, uploading something into everything, and deleting again! Now to work;
"Western pond turtles" are described as being a reason to wake early in the morning and are said to be like sculpters sitting on a rock in the pond. Yertle lived in a pond. Originally, he sat on a rock. He looked pretty grumpy though, not exactly a peaceful soul early in the morning.
Continuing research on the symbolism of the turtle, more and more results emerged involving the turtle holding up the world.
Native Americans say that the Wood Turtle carries the earth on it's back. In a Hindu legend, four elephants hold up the world, and these elephants stand on a turtle's back. In some religions there are connections drawn between turtles and god. Like Yertle? Trying to get higher, rule the world? Like God? No... Like Hitler.
-Nina Danielle
"Western pond turtles" are described as being a reason to wake early in the morning and are said to be like sculpters sitting on a rock in the pond. Yertle lived in a pond. Originally, he sat on a rock. He looked pretty grumpy though, not exactly a peaceful soul early in the morning.
Continuing research on the symbolism of the turtle, more and more results emerged involving the turtle holding up the world.
Native Americans say that the Wood Turtle carries the earth on it's back. In a Hindu legend, four elephants hold up the world, and these elephants stand on a turtle's back. In some religions there are connections drawn between turtles and god. Like Yertle? Trying to get higher, rule the world? Like God? No... Like Hitler.
-Nina Danielle
Why Did He Lose The Moustache?
Jan. 6th
Yertle = Hitler. Or any other dictator, for that matter.
Dr. Seuss's writing was for all people, even though it is normally thought of as reserved for children. We can see this in the mature models and morals in all of his stories. Seuss tackles racism and ethnic hatred, political squabbles, and other hard-hitting topics on the regular. It is hard, when one looks closely enough, to find a story that does not have a deeper meaning than what was once originally interpreted. Erik sought inspiration from the novel, leafing through it repeatedly to find information. Concept understood, Erik set his mind to work, although seemingly his hands sat idle.
Jan. 7th
Why did he lose the moustache?
Yertle the Turtle was originally portrayed with a Hitler-esque moustache, but this was later removed, but why? Erik sought the answer to this question. He found it. According to Seuss, "Yertle had a moustache, but I took it off. I thought it was gilding the lily a bit." Not much time left in class, Erik put his mind on idle and let the ideas flow.
Jan. 8th
Powered up and ready to go.
Ideas must be recorded. Today, Erik brought in his laptop to record the information in the form of the blog that you are reading now. Erik, while unable to access said laptop, watched the music video for Sequoia Throne by Protest The Hero on his iPod, drawing other connections to the iconic moustache. Back in the driver's seat, Erik looked up information on Germany's facist government, World War II, Adolf Hitler, Mussolini, and other "relevant" information.
-Erik McGowan
Yertle = Hitler. Or any other dictator, for that matter.
Dr. Seuss's writing was for all people, even though it is normally thought of as reserved for children. We can see this in the mature models and morals in all of his stories. Seuss tackles racism and ethnic hatred, political squabbles, and other hard-hitting topics on the regular. It is hard, when one looks closely enough, to find a story that does not have a deeper meaning than what was once originally interpreted. Erik sought inspiration from the novel, leafing through it repeatedly to find information. Concept understood, Erik set his mind to work, although seemingly his hands sat idle.
Jan. 7th
Why did he lose the moustache?
Yertle the Turtle was originally portrayed with a Hitler-esque moustache, but this was later removed, but why? Erik sought the answer to this question. He found it. According to Seuss, "Yertle had a moustache, but I took it off. I thought it was gilding the lily a bit." Not much time left in class, Erik put his mind on idle and let the ideas flow.
Jan. 8th
Powered up and ready to go.
Ideas must be recorded. Today, Erik brought in his laptop to record the information in the form of the blog that you are reading now. Erik, while unable to access said laptop, watched the music video for Sequoia Throne by Protest The Hero on his iPod, drawing other connections to the iconic moustache. Back in the driver's seat, Erik looked up information on Germany's facist government, World War II, Adolf Hitler, Mussolini, and other "relevant" information.
-Erik McGowan
If the world were flat...
January 6th.
The project began by selecting a Dr. Seuss story, which will be analyzed throughly. The group decided on Yurtle the Turtle, already familiar with the lead characters relation to Adolf Hitler. Having never heard the story before today, Nina found it extremely odd to read a Dr. Seuss story, now aware that they key role was occupied by a metaphor to Hitler. Luckily, Maddie's fabulous expression while reading kept it lively and entertaining.
This is quite a twist on her belief of Dr. Seuss growing up; a man who wrote silly words in funny stories to entertain children. Or at least, that was Nina's previous perception of the author.
January 7th.
Today the research began. Nina began looking at the symbolism of a turtle, the animal used to potray the Hitler-like character in the story. She found a reference to ancient myths which described the world as resting on a turtle's back.
In a cartoon shown by teacher's while they teacher student's that the world is round, this myth is revisited breifly. A flat version of planet earth lies across a turtle's back, and a canoe is shown falling off the edge while the turtle watches.
In regards to the story Yurtle the Turtle, this ancient myth is quite fitting. Yertle builds himself a throne out of turtles, stack up by standing on each other's backs. His goal is to expand his own world, because he thinks that everything that he can see belongs to him. This sight relies now only on one turtle's back, but many, many turtles. Yertle builds a world on turtle's back, and, like the canoe in the cartoon, venturing to far results in falling.
The same website stated that "the turtle is always at home with himself." This is a vast contradiction to Yertle, who allows his home to be external, and is therefore unsatisfied.
-Nina Danielle
The project began by selecting a Dr. Seuss story, which will be analyzed throughly. The group decided on Yurtle the Turtle, already familiar with the lead characters relation to Adolf Hitler. Having never heard the story before today, Nina found it extremely odd to read a Dr. Seuss story, now aware that they key role was occupied by a metaphor to Hitler. Luckily, Maddie's fabulous expression while reading kept it lively and entertaining.
This is quite a twist on her belief of Dr. Seuss growing up; a man who wrote silly words in funny stories to entertain children. Or at least, that was Nina's previous perception of the author.
January 7th.
Today the research began. Nina began looking at the symbolism of a turtle, the animal used to potray the Hitler-like character in the story. She found a reference to ancient myths which described the world as resting on a turtle's back.
In a cartoon shown by teacher's while they teacher student's that the world is round, this myth is revisited breifly. A flat version of planet earth lies across a turtle's back, and a canoe is shown falling off the edge while the turtle watches.
In regards to the story Yurtle the Turtle, this ancient myth is quite fitting. Yertle builds himself a throne out of turtles, stack up by standing on each other's backs. His goal is to expand his own world, because he thinks that everything that he can see belongs to him. This sight relies now only on one turtle's back, but many, many turtles. Yertle builds a world on turtle's back, and, like the canoe in the cartoon, venturing to far results in falling.
The same website stated that "the turtle is always at home with himself." This is a vast contradiction to Yertle, who allows his home to be external, and is therefore unsatisfied.
-Nina Danielle
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