A few days ago I got an e-mail from a friend that contained an article comparing Trump’s reluctance to concede and give up power to a similar situation in Nazi Germany. I hadn’t read that particular article, but it was similar and contained essentially the same information as a few other sources I had read.
Well, for some reason that got me to thinking about a story that I read to our kids by Dr. Seuss titled “Yertle the Turtle.” In case you haven’t read the story, Yertle is the king of a pond, but he wants more. He demands that other turtles stack themselves up on top of each other so he can sit on top of them and survey his kingdom. Mack, the turtle at the bottom, is exhausted. He asks Yertle for a rest but Yertle ignores him and demands even more turtles so he can have a better view. Eventually Yertle notices the moon and he’s furious that anything dare be higher than himself, and is about ready to call for more turtles when Mac burped. The sudden movement topples the whole stack and sends Yertle flying into the mud, freeing the rest of the turtles from their stacking duty.
This story, like a lot that Dr. Seuss wrote, is actually about much bigger things than it seems and has a deeper meaning than just being a “kids story.” This story is an acknowledged representation of Hitler and the Nazi regime during World War II.
Yertle the Turtle represents Hitler. Yertle’s dictatorial rule of the pond and takeover of the surrounding area parallel Hitler’s regime in Germany and invasion of various parts of Europe.
The story’s symbolism can be interpreted in various ways — Mack, the little turtle on the bottom represents the German society, representing the German people who follow Hitler’s rules and beliefs due to fear. Mack supports Yertle by keeping the king up high even though he is going through pain. Mack said, “… but down here below, we are feeling great pain. I know up on top you seeing great sights, but down here at the bottom we, too, should have rights. We turtles can’t stand it. Our shells will all crack! Besides, we need food. We are starving!.” This describes how the German society felt about Hitler being in power. The people were poor and had to live with rationed food, while Hitler was in great shape at the top — the people did not have rights and were suffering greatly.
Finally, Mack decided that he had taken enough — he got mad. He got so mad, he burped! And his burp shook the throne of the king. His action caused the whole stack of turtles to shake, causing Yertle the Turtle to fall off his throne and into the mud. This illustrates the German people not being able to tolerate their suffering any longer and having enough of Hitler and the Nazi regime. Mack’s burp symbolizes the uprising of voices from society. The story ends with “…. all the turtles are free as turtles and maybe, all creatures should be.”
During an interview after Yertle the Turtle was published, Dr. Seuss was asked why he used “maybe” in that last sentence and not “surely.” He said, “I wanted other people to say surely in their minds instead of my having to say it.”
In my mind, that makes a pretty good point… no one should tell us what to think or do.
During the past few years, I’ve often thought about this story… it’s said that “out of the mouths of babes….” Maybe sometimes it takes a good “Kids” story to make us think.
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