Character Analysis: Horton Hears A Who

Theodor Seuss Geisel was born in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1904. He was the second child in his family and the only son. He came from a wealthy German-American family who immigrated to the United States in 1867. At the age of seventeen he attended Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. While attending Dartmouth, he became the editor of a comical magazine known as “Jack O’ Lantern.” Four years later he decided to transfer to Oxford University in the United Kingdom.
After some time at Oxford he decided to leave college and to travel across Europe. In 1927, Geisel returned home and moved to New York. While living in New York, he began his writing career. Geisel was rejected countless times by innumerable publishers. After four months

of rejection, Geisel published his own work in “The Evening Post” and this gave him the position of a staff writer in a weekly paper known as “Judge.”
Geisel then began to advertise products in his cartoons through the late 1930’s after signing year contract for 12,000 dollars a year. In 1936, he wrote his first children’s book while on a ship. Geisel’s book was rejected by forty-seven publishers, before the publisher “Vanguard Press” decided to publish it. Then in the Summer of 1943 he enlisted in the Army. He was stationed in Fort Fox. In 1944, Geisel was promoted to Major and assisted in creating films to help train new soldiers. After World War II ended, Geisel began to write additional children’s books, little did the children know, his works were literary analyses of World War II and had his views and reflections of those involved in the war as well.
One of Ted Geisels popular childrens book that reflects his beliefs and attitudes towards World War II is “Horton Hear’s a Who.” This childrens story was believed to be about an elephant who that meets a very small creature known as a “Who.” The who is very small and cannot be seen by the naked eye, and Horton only can hear him because of his strong hearing.

In “Horton Hears a Who” the creatures of Who-ville are described to be just as a speck of dust compared to the other characters in the story. The other characters were seen to be stronger due to their larger size compared to the Whos. This compares to the size of Japan during World War II. Japan was smaller compared to the stronger countries during this time like Germany, United States, and Britain. Which is why Geisel used the Whos as a symbol of Japan because he believed it wasn’t fair that the United States dropped the bomb and obliterated them to nothing.
Many of the antagonist in the story ridicule Horton, because the other animals cannot see or hear the Who’s. “I can hear you fine. But the kangaroos’ ears aren’t as strong” (Geisel 3). Horton is trying to save the town of Who-ville from being destroyed or damaged by the other animals. No matter how difficult the task at hand became, Horton always overcame the conflict to protect his new

friends.
There are multiple references to World War II within this childrens book. One being the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Horton is a symbol of America after the dropping of the atomic bomb for aiding Japan after the atomic bomb was dropped and those who were against the bomb being dropped. The Eagle is a symbol of America before the dropping of the atomic bomb and those who supported the decision to drop the bomb.
Horton believed that all life is precious and that he needed to protect the Whos from danger. He believed a person is a person no matter what. Who-ville symbolize both Japanese cities that were bombed, and may also symbolize Japan. The story states that since they are so small that’s why Horton had to protect them. Because it is not fair that the more powerful people should be able to destroy their livelihood.
While Who-ville was trying to recover after their town was destroyed represent Hiroshima and Nagasaki after being bombed because both can be described as a very difficult time within their culture.

“In your towns, darkest hour” (Geisel 4). Most of the citizens felt they would never recover due to the amount of damage to their civilization just as the Japanese felt the same after their town was destroyed and had almost nothing left.
Another work of Ted Geisel that symbolizes World War II is “The Sneetches.” The short childrens story is about a group of Sneetches that are divided by those who have stars, and by those who do not have the stars. The Sneetches who were lucky enough to have a star on their belly seemed to be having a great life. Everything seemed to be handed to them and they didn’t have to work hard for anything. Those who did not have a star on their belly were unable to socialize with the other Sneetches who had one. Those who did not have stars were segregated from the

others.
Even though they were all Sneetches, the ones who had a star on their belly thought they were better than the ones who did not because they had one and the others didn’t. Once the ones without stars were given a star, the original Sneetches got theirs removed because they were the original star bellied Sneetches and didn’t think they should socialize with the new star bellied Sneetches. After removing and re-adding the stars the sneetches eventually realized that all Sneetches are the same, and that no one Sneetch is better than the other.
“The Sneetches” illustrated Ted Geisels attitude on social change. It exhibited his disagreement with anti-Semitism. It demonstrated to readers what racism and discrimination does to one’s society. The Sneetches are a symbolic representation of the Holocaust in multiple ways. The Sneetches symbolize the Jewish people living in Germany during World War II. The Sneetches with the stars symbolize the stars that the Nazis required some of the Jewish citizens to distinguish them from one another.
The man who constantly changed who the Sneetches were by removing and adding the stars on the bellies of the Sneetches could be a symbol of the Nazis. He continuously wanted to change and further divide the group for personal reasons. He wanted them to be divided because there were two kinds of them. This is a symbol of the Holocaust because there were those that practiced the Jewish faith and those who didn’t. The Jewish people had to stay away from other non-Jewish religions. Likewise, the Sneetches that had stars on their bellies had to stay away from those who didn’t.
The Sneetches also represent the Japanese after Pearl Harbor. The Sneetches with the star on their bellies symbolize European-American citizens, and the non-star bellied Sneetches symbolize the Japanese-Americans. Nobody wanted to socialize with them because they were not trusted. Once the war was over, both the Americans from two different decents and the Sneetches realized they are equal and all the same and shouldn’t be divided by ethnicity, race, or by belongings.
Ted Geisel had a great amount of influence on the World War II. His works illustrated the division that the war caused. It showed us how bad racial and religious division really is, and what the effect is of destroying an entire country within seconds. Without him, nobody would really understand the cost of division and discrimination.