I never watched “The Lorax” a lot as a kid. Maybe once or twice, I never really thought much of the movie; I just thought the Lorax himself looked funny. It wasn’t until recently, after coming across Ashby, an influencer on Tiktok and her parodies of the movie that I found it very funny. Since then, I decided to rewatch the movie, 10 years older than I originally was when I watched it, with 10 more years of knowledge that came very helpful in understanding the movie.
For starters, Dr. Seuss was ahead of his time in my opinion. The book, from where the movie is based, came out in 1971. I believe around this time, although there were some more sustainable practices in the everyday cycle of things, this era was where a lot of wasteful and environmentally harmful things originated from. I say this in hindsight of course, no one knew then that the plastics they would replace milk cartons and bottles with would hurt our environment as much as they have; they just knew it was cheaper and more convenient for the producer and customer. So for Dr. Seuss to write a children’s book full of real-life metaphors about the pollution that capitalism constributes to our environment was very ahead of his time. Even with the movie premiering 13 years ago, concerns over our environment weren’t as extreme or dire as they are now.
Now, being a young adult, I caught a lot of the metaphors the movie referred to. For starters, when I was little, I didn’t realize that Truffala Trees were a direct reference to the trees in our environment. Watching again, I recognized how with no trees around, there was no longer clean air which rapidly deteriorated the environment for the animals to live in and made it inhabitable. I also caught how, although the Onceler could have harvested the fur by hand to not only save the tree but also allow for more fur to regrow, he picked the quicker way out to make more money by cutting all the trees down. Not only did he ruin the environment the animals he once loved lived in, but killed his entire supply for his business as well. He ruined it all for temporary success. This reminds me of the mass deforestation in this country. Over and over again, we see trees being cut down and animals having to leave their habitats for the newest building to pop up. Whether it’s a mall, a Chipotle or a bar – an entire ecosystem once lived in that land, that no longer does. And in 30 years, when the building is no longer being used because the latest trend is no longer in, those trees were cut down and the animals were relocated for an abandoned lot of land. This analysis is also brought up when the employees of the town clean up an abandoned sign from the Thneed and mention how he wonders what the next obsession or hyperfixation will be. Another contribution is the gas-guzzling vehicles he used to cut down the trees. As more trees were cut down, less fresh air was being produced and replaced by the smoke from those machines, further ruining the environment. There are many metaphors throughout the movie and the book referring to the dangers of polluting and the harms towards our environment that as an adult now, it becomes much more apparant and disappointing.
I think The Lorax is a symbol of guilt and shame. Although in the movie he is a cynical and physical being, I think he is there to represent why we should care about and be cautious about our actions towards the environment. Representing how we act can hurt others and the things around us. Once The Onceler realized the consequences of his actions too late and realized that he had ignored The Lorax’s pleas to stop, he spent the remainder of his life hiding away in shame from what he had done and the damage he had caused. He lost the friends he once loved and his family no longer needed him, as his business had failed once he got rid of all the supply. He was all alone in a polluted and abandoned environment because he chose financial greed over the wellbeing of everything around him. After that, he resented himself for dismissing The Lorax and wished for the day he returned. The film ends with him returning the final Truffala seed to Ted to plant the seed and remind people the importance of the real trees and why they need to care again. Once The Onceler helped save the livelihood of Truffala Trees with the help of Ted, The Lorax returned and The Onceler was forgiven, forgave himself and knew that he had what it took to make things better again. Although I believe The Lorax himself represents guilt, I think he also represents forgiveness that although you should be cautious of your actions, it is never too late to make them right.