Freud on Seuss
\n a book review by Josh LeBeau<\/p>\n
(copied from the Koala, UCSD’s humour newspaper, which has no
\n copyright notices in it anywhere)<\/p>\n
The Cat in the Hat
\nby Dr. Seuss, 61 pages. Beginner Books, $3.95<\/p>\n
The Cat in the Hat is a hard-hitting novel of prose and poetry
\nin which the author re-examines the dynamic rhyming schemes and
\nbold imagery of some of his earlier works, most notably Green
\nEggs and Ham, If I Ran the Zoo, and Why Can’t I Shower With
\nMommy? In this novel, Theodore Geisel, writing under the
\npseudonym Dr. Seuss, pays homage to the great Dr. Sigmund Freud
\nin a nightmarish fantasy of a renegade feline helping two young
\nchildren understand their own frustrated sexuality.<\/p>\n
The story opens with two youngsters, a brother and a sister,
\nabandoned by their mother, staring mournfully through the
\nwindow of their single-family dwelling. In the foreground, a
\nlarge tree\/phallic symbol dances wildly in the wind, taunting
\nthe children and encouraging them to succumb to the sexual
\nyearnings they undoubtedly feel for each other. Even to the
\nmost unlearned reader, the blatant references to the
\nincestuous relationship the two share set the tone for Seuss’
\nprobing examination of the satisfaction of primitive needs.
\nThe Cat proceeds to charm the wary youths into engaging in
\nwhat he so innocently refers to as “tricks.” At this point,
\nthe fish, an obvious Christ figure who represents the
\nprevailing Christian morality, attempts to warn the children,
\nand thus, in effect, warns all of humanity of the dangers
\nassociated with the unleashing of the primal urges. In
\nresponse to this, the cat proceeds to balance the aquatic
\nnaysayer on the end of his umbrella, essentially saying,
\n“Down with morality; down with God!”<\/p>\n
After poohpoohing the righteous rantings of the waterlogged
\nChrist figure, the Cat begins to juggle several icons of
\nWestern culture, most notably two books, representing the Old
\nand New Testaments, and a saucer of lactic fluid, an ironic
\nreference to maternal loss the two children experienced when
\ntheir mother abandoned them “for the afternoon.” Our heroic
\nId adds to this bold gesture a rake and a toy man, and thus
\ncompletes the Oedipal triangle.<\/p>\n
Later in the novel, Seuss introduces the proverbial Pandora’s
\nbox, a large red crate out of which the Id releases Thing One,
\nor Freud’s concept of Ego, the division of the psyche that
\nserves as the conscious mediator between the person and
\nreality, and Thing Two, the Superego which functions to reward
\nand punish through a system of moral attitudes, conscience,
\nand guilt. Referring to this box, the Cat says, “Now look at
\nthis trick. Take a look!” In this, Dr. Seuss uses the
\nchildren as a brilliant metaphor for the reader, and asks the
\nreader to re-examine his own inner self.<\/p>\n
The children, unable to control the Id, Ego, and Superego
\nallow these creatures to run free and mess up the house, or
\nmore symbolically, control their lives. This rampage
\ncontinues until the fish, or Christ symbol, warns that the
\nmother is returning to reinstate the Oedipal triangle that
\nexisted before her abandonment of the children. At this
\npoint, Seuss introduces a many-armed cleaning device which
\nrepresents the psychoanalytic couch, which proceeds to put
\nthe two youngsters’ lives back in order.<\/p>\n
With powerful simplicity, clarity, and drama, Seuss reduces
\nFreud’s concepts on the dynamics of the human psyche to an
\neasily understood gesture. Dr. Seuss’ poetry and choice of
\nwords is equally impressive.<\/p>\n
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