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fancy. It covered every facet of the human experience. My enthusiasm translated into a desire to open up the world to others in the way it had been opened to me. I have been lucky enough to be in the position for some years now to do just that. But I still have to fight against the prevailing attitude that philosophy is worthless. It’s not my dad with whom I have to deal, but students and their parents, who want to know, “What can you do with a philosophy degree?” I can’t answer this question. Or rather I can, but no answer will satisfy those who ask this question. Whoever asks this question already presumes that an education is only as good as the job it secures, and whatever isn’t a hirable skill isn’t worth developing. But college isn’t about getting a job; it’s about getting an education, and an education is about developing the whole person. Music, art, history, philosophy, religion, as well as sciences, math, and whatever job training you get in Business 101 are all part and parcel of your growth as a person. Philosophy trains you to be open, thoughtful, and resourceful—a genuinely sharp, bright, and creative human being. This is valuable whether you get a job or not. Thankfully, there has been a recent trend in philosophy to popularize the discipline and bring it to a general audience. This trend is almost exclusively due to William Irwin and his wildly successful series on philosophy and popular culture, to which I have contributed previously. This use of popular elements to disseminate philosophical wisdom is useful both as a public relations move for my discipline but also in promoting the goal of philosophy, which is living well through a critical and reflective attitude. This book was produced in the same spirit. However, it is markedly different than other similar volumes in one regard—it is meant to be an introduction to philosophy in general. This is why I chose to

focus on Dr. Seuss. From the outset I wanted to offer an accessible and

fun introduction to that tradition that inspired me so many years ago. What I have sought to produce, with many thanks to my wonderful, helpful, and accommodating contributors, is an introduction to major themes and traditions in philosophy through an aspect of popular culture with which almost everyone is familiar, Dr. Seuss. This introduction isn’t exhaustive, it’s merely a window into a discipline, but hopefully opening that window will let in a breath of fresh air and open the reader’s eyes to the fact that it truly is “opener there in the wide open air” (“Oh, the Places You’ll Go”).

Acknowledgments

I would like to acknowledge all of those who supported me during the completion of this project, from my loving family to all of my contributors. I would also like to thank those colleagues/friends who have kept me sane over the years by being supportive, helpful, and always willing to lend an ear not only for my ideas but also my gripes. They remind me daily why we do what we do, and their company and support are appreciated more than they will ever know. Thank you, Ron and Tanya. In addition I’d like to acknowledge the University Research Council at the University of Central Arkansas for awarding me a summer stipend during the summer of 2010 to assist in completing this volume.

Editor’s Note

Many of Dr. Seuss’s works are not paginated, which can make citing them tricky. Luckily, the books are quite short, so if anyone wants to know on what page a reference occurs they merely have to flip through until they find it. So in order to make things simpler and to avoid vast amounts of endnotes, all references to Seuss’s works will be parenthetical according to the key below. All works are published by Random House.

And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (Mulberry)

Bartholomew and the Oobleck (Oobleck)

“The Big Brag” in Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories (Brag)

The Butter Battle Book (Butter)

The Cat in the Hat (Cat)

Daisy-Head Mayzie (Daisy)

Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? (Lucky)

Dr. Seuss’s Sleep Book (Sleep)

“Gertrude McFuzz” in Yertle