The Sneetches is a children’s book written by Theodor Seuss Geisel, Dr. Seuss, in 1961.
The story tells about a group of creatures that seem to be the same in appearance. All of the creatures are yellow, shaped similar to a large bowling pin and basically identical. There is one difference that separates the Sneetches, some have a green star on their bellies and some do not. This small physical difference ends up dividing the community of Sneetches. The group of Sneetches with star-bellies thinks they are better than the group with plain bellies. The star-bellied Sneetches brag about their stars. They feel and act superior to the plain bellied Sneetches. They tease the plain bellied Sneetches and treat them horribly. The star-bellied ones do not include them in any of their events or activities. They teach their children to treat the plain bellied children this way also. Basically the star-bellied Sneetches look down on the plain bellied Sneetches and do not think of them as equal.
This awful treatment makes the plain bellied Sneetches feel very sad and oppressed. They want to fit in and be included not made to feel inferior. It seems as if there is nothing they can do to change the situation. One day a stranger named Sylvester McMonkey McBean rides in with what he says is the answer to their problem. He has a contraption that can put stars on their bellies! He sells them easily on the idea since they are willing to do whatever they can to fit in. They pay a $3 fee, go through the machine and come out with a green star on their bellies. Now they were happy because they looked just like the other star-bellied Sneetches.
The original star-bellied Sneetches got really mad because they can no longer tell who is who. Mr. Monkey McB...
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...scrimination, racism and inequality are unjust and have no place in our society. People are people and should all be treated equal. Differences should not divide us. They should be accepted and used to bring us closer together. What a better place the world would be if everyone practiced this concept!
Dr. Seuss. The Sneetches and Other Stories. Random House. New York. 1961.
http://avondaleartworks.com/the_art_of_dr_seuss/dr_seuss_for_president
http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005143
http://www.everydaycitizen.com/2009/02/dr_seusss_political_books.htm
Works Cited
Dr. Seuss. The Sneetches and Other Stories. Random House. New York. 1961.
http://avondaleartworks.com/the_art_of_dr_seuss/dr_seuss_for_president
http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005143
http://www.everydaycitizen.com/2009/02/dr_seusss_political_books.htm
In order to help combat against these tensions, there needs to be a restarting of global and political forces. The present system treats race as a scientifically proven separator of individual and instead should be seeing race for what it really is, a socially constructed
In ZZ Packer’s short story titled “Brownies,” Laurel, also known as Snot, tells the story about her African-American Brownie troop attempting to fight a Caucasian Brownie troop, Troop 909. Arnetta, a fellow Brownie in Snot’s troop, overhears one of the girls from Troop 909 call another member a racial slur and plans to get revenge on all the girls. Snot, being a shy person, keeps quiet through the entire process of her troop planning their attack on Troop 909. Snot is a flat character; moreover, her characterization supports the theme of ignorance prevailing due to silence.
Personal characteristics, appearance, or natural physical function seem to be the manner in which the black girls view most of the other characters in the story. From Mrs. Margolin, the troop leader, to other characters in the story, the description includes outer personal characteristics or appearance rather than inner qualities to be admired. The description of the camp counselor is an example. “Mrs. Margolin even looks like a mother duck--she had hair cropped to a small ball of a head, almost no neck, and huge, miraculous breast” (357). The description of her attire is equally non-complementary as references to Mrs. Margolin as “Big Fat Mamma. The historical south, as the narrator describes shows white individuals in their segregated locations and blacks in theirs, with only chance meetings as both races conducted daily routines such as shopping or moving about through the streets. Therefore, having the white Brownie troop being a part of the camping trip is like being invaders as Arnetta describes--“with their long, shampoo-commercial hair, straight as Spaghetti from the box” (358). Thus, hair as well as complexion added fuel to the flame of envy and hatred, which is alive in Arnetta’s mind. A physical function such as a sneeze, which causes mucus to drip from her nose caused the narrator to wear the name “Snot” since first
“The Sneetches” is about two types of creatures, divided by having or not having stars on their bellies. Symbolic interaction theory examines society by approaching the subjective meanings that people set on things, events, and conduct. A few important features of our social knowledge and character, is race that was brought out in the video. By showing injustice, the star belly sneetches wouldn’t allow their children to play ball with the plain belly sneetches children. While the star belly sneetches had picnics and parties, they never invited the plain belly sneetches, and would always keep them away year after year. The sneetches with stars are not considered bourgeoisie because, they didn’t own any means of production such as machinery.
In America today, I feel every ethnic group should see themselves as equal. Regardless of their heritage, they are still Americans. So, I feel any racism between Americans is very ignorant. In conclusion, I think difference is good, but similarities are better, because you find out the things that you share and how you can relate to one another.
We must acknowledge how views of racism and ethnicity affect each and everyone of us in our lives so that we can avoid conflicts.
In the short story “Brownies” by Z. Z. Packer a young girl that goes by the name of Snot realizes that the world is a harsh place. Not only does Snot have a realization about the world, but she also realizes that everyone around her is contributing to the harshness and meanness and Snot cannot do anything about it. The harshness and meanness in the world that Snot cannot do anything about is racism. All throughout the story, racism is a huge factor, but the main character realizes that racism comes in all different ways including age and color.
Dr. Seuss Throughout Dr. Seuss’s life, he has written dozens of books with over one hundred million copies sold, and still being produced to this day. Theodor Seuss Geisel is a well-known author that had many inspirations for his works that are still read by millions today, such as Yertle the Turtle, The Sneeches, How the Grinch Stole Christmas. His inevitable fame and fortune came with a lot of pressure; pressure of his readers as well as pressure of his producers. Dr. Seuss was born in Springfield, MA on March 2, 1904 as Theodor Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss At Work). He attended Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.
“The real meaning of enlightenment is to gaze with undimmed eyes on all darkness.”- (Kazantzakis). The play Our Town, written by Thornton Wilder, takes place in the small town of Grover’s Corners. The residents of Grover’s Corners are content with their lives and do not mind the small town they are living in. Emily Webb, a girl living in Grover’s Corners does not think secondly about her life… until it is over. This play can be compared to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, where men are kept prisoner until one man is able to escape. Only after escaping the cave, does the man realize how much better the life outside is, and truly understands that his previous life was a prison. Emily's crossing from life to death is a parallel to the the
“Racism is man's gravest threat to man - the maximum of hatred for a minimum of reason,” —Abraham Joshua Heschel. Racism has plagued society since the beginning of time, and as Heschel explained it is one of mankind’s greatest downfalls. As social animals; humans have a natural desire to relate to each other and group off. Collaborating with others has many benefits such as, starting a family or getting through natural disasters but; often times this desire to connect has led to superiority complexes and severe racism. History shows that the failure to embrace differences can lead to horrific wars and unrest. An example of a time when a group of common people used racism to connect is America’s Ku Klux Klan. Although the Ku Klux Klan has become less of an issue over the years, it is still existent and has the potential to expand.
Racism (n): the prejudice that members of one race are intrinsically superior to members of other race (Wordnet search, 1), a controversial topic in today’s society, a subject that many people try to sweep under the rug, but yet a detrimental problem that has been present in America since the colonial era. Will this dilemma come to a halt? Can all Americans see each other as equals despite their skin color and nationality; and what role has it played in past generations versus today’s generations and how will it affect our future? Has this on going way of thinking gotten better or worse? These are questions raised when many think about the subject; especially members of American ethnic groups and backgrounds, because most have dealt with racial discrimination in their life time.
It is the responsibility of the adults to stop these learned behaviors and teach the children that people are all equal, that is what needs to be instilled in the generations to come, otherwise everything will stay the same. We have come a long way as a people, but we still have a long way that we need to go. Nothing will ever be perfect, but it should always get better. The lessons that are learned from this workshop are lessons that should be taught in every classroom all over the world, maybe then we will see that we are no different from each other.
Racism and prejudice has been present in almost every civilization and society throughout history. Even though the world has progressed greatly in the last couple of decades, both socially and technologically, racism, hatred and prejudice still exists today, deeply embedded in old-fashioned, narrow-minded traditions and values.
The book, A Sick Day for Amos McGee, by Philip C. Stead is a Caldecott gold medal awarded picture storybook. It is a book about Amos, an elderly man, who works at the City Zoo, but always makes time visit his zoo friends. Amos visit his elephant friend who he plays chess with, then visits the tortoise who he races with, his friend the penguin who he sits quietly with, his friend the rhinoceros who he always lends a handkerchief due to his runny nose, and then his owl friend who he always reads a story to. One day Amos got sick, and did not appear at the Zoo. Since all his animal’s friends worried, they decided to go visit him, and take care of him just like Amos did to them.
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." - Martin Luther King, Jr. True spoken words of wisdom allow us to come together and work with each other, rather than against each other. Black, red, white, orange; it never matters about what skin color you are, it’s about what you do as a person through your actions is what matters. I am a caring and compassionate human being and I do not believe in violence, only self-defense. Instead of saying something hurtful, say something kind and treat others the way you want to be treated. Hate only allows more hate to grow like a fermenting fungus that infects the infected. If someone says something nasty or unkind to you, just say a nice comment back. Saying a mean comment will only feed the devilish beast of hate. In order to kill the beast, you must starve the beast with kindness. Love your family and friends, and love your enemies more because they need love the most. Death can only become of hate, life can only become of love.