Yertle The Turtle Video
Kristin Dampeer
Though the book included "burp", a word then considered to be relatively rude, it was a success upon publication, and has since sold more than a million copies. In 2001, it was listed at 125 on the Publishers Weekly list of the best-selling children's books of all time.
The eponymous story revolves around Yertle the Turtle, the king of the pond (located on the faraway island of Sala-ma-sond), where all the turtles swim happily. Dissatisfied with the stone that serves as his throne (it's too small for him to rule the landscape beyond the pond), Yertle commands the other turtles to stack themselves beneath him so that he can see farther and expand his kingdom, each time marveling at what he believes he now rules. However, the stacked turtles are in pain. A turtle named Mack, who has a checkerboard-style shell and is at the bottom of the pile, is bearing the brunt of the suffering. Mack asks Yertle for a respite, but Yertle just tells him to be quiet. Yertle decides to further expand his kingdom and commands more and more turtles to add to his throne and rises above everything he sees. Mack makes a second request for a respite because the increased weight is now causing extreme pain and hunger to the turtles at the bottom of the pile. Again, Yertle yells at Mack to be quiet. Yertle then notices the moon rising above him as the night approaches. Furious, he decides to call for even more turtles in an attempt to rise above it. Before he can give the command, Mack decides he has had enough. He burps, which shakes up Yertle's throne and tosses the turtle king off the turtle stack and into the water, leaving him "King of the Mud" and allowing the others to once again swim free, "as turtles, and maybe all creatures, should be."[1]
A stack of turtles drawn similarly to those featured in "Yertle the Turtle" first appeared on March 20, 1942, in a cartoon for the New York City newspaper PM, where Seuss worked as an editorial cartoonist. The illustration shows two stacks of turtles forming the letter "V" on top of a large turtle labelled "Dawdling Producers", with a caption reading "You Can't Build A Substantial V Out of Turtles!"[2]
Seuss has stated that the titular character Yertle represented Adolf Hitler, with Yertle's despotic rule of the pond and takeover of the surrounding area parallel to Hitler's regime in Germany and invasion of various parts of Europe.[3][4] Though Seuss made a point of not beginning the writing of his stories with a moral in mind, stating that "kids can see a moral coming a mile off", he was not against writing about issues; he said "there's an inherent moral in any story" and remarked that he was "subversive as hell".[5][6] "Yertle the Turtle" has variously been described as "autocratic rule overturned",[7] "a reaction against the fascism of World War II",[8] and "subversive of authoritarian rule".[9]
All three stories in Yertle were originally published in Redbook magazine in the early 1950s, as part of a series of stories that Dr. Seuss wrote for the magazine. These stories proved to be popular, and Geisel decided to put some of them in a book. On September 14, 1956, Geisel signed a contract with Random House for such a book, which would include the story "How Officer Pat Saved the Whole Town" and have the title How Officer Pat Saved the Town and Other Stories. Officer Pat was planned to be published in the autumn of 1957, but it never did get published. On December 18, 1957, the Officer Pat contract was dissolved, and Geisel signed another contract for the publication of Yertle in 1958. The "Officer Pat" story was eventually included in Horton and the Kwuggerbug and More Lost Stories, which was published posthumously in 2014.[10]
The last lines of "Yertle the Turtle" read: "And the turtles, of course ...all the turtles are free / As turtles, and maybe, all creatures should be".[1] When questioned about why he wrote "maybe" rather than "surely", Seuss replied that he did not want to sound "didactic or like a preacher on a platform", and that he wanted the reader "to say 'surely' in their minds instead of my having to say it".[6]
The book is dedicated to the Sagmaster family as a tribute to Joseph Sagmaster, who had introduced Seuss to his first wife, Helen Palmer, when they were both attending Oxford University. Sagmaster is quoted as saying that bringing the two together was "the happiest inspiration I've ever had".[13]
Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories is a 1992 animation directed by Ray Messecar and narrated by John Lithgow[14] (later released and cropped to widescreen format on Blu-ray part of Who's Who in the Dr. Seuss?).
In 1961, RCA Camden Records released "Yertle the Turtle and Other Stories" with the three stories on the A side and "Bartholomew and the Oobleck" on the B side. The liner notes state "set to dramatic action personally by "Dr. Seuss" with music featuring Marvin Miller".[15]
All it took was some blue fleece, white pom poms, batting, and white pipe cleaners. I cut out oval shapes (one smaller and one larger) for each turtle. I placed pipe cleaners in the desired positions for legs and a tail. Then, I pinned the two pieces together where the edges lined up all the way around. This will leave the top kinda poofy to give that shell affect once stuffed. I sewed about a 1/2in seam all the way around and left a small opening where the pom pom head goes. I used this opening and stuffed with batting. I finished sewing the turtle up and hot glued the pom pom heads on. Finally, I hot glued each turtle to the next. Easy Peasy, a turtle stack!
Although it was written over 50 years ago, one of my absolute favorite books of all time is Yertle the Turtle by Dr. Seuss. I used to read it with my family all the time when I was the age of a Junior Beaver (which was forever ago!). Yertle the Turtle follows the story of Yertle, the king of the pond on the far-away Island of Sala-ma-Sond. All the turtles in the pond had everything they needed and were happy just where they were- that was until Yertle decided he wanted a bigger kingdom. Yertle had turtles upon turtles stacked up high so he would be king of all that he could see. Finally, one turtle named Mack stood up for himself and all the turtles in the pond and they knocked Yertle down from his high throne of turtles. Yertle fell all the way down to the bottom of the pond and became king of the mud. Dr. Seuss ends by saying that all the turtles were free in the pond just as all creatures on earth should be.
Yertle the Turtle was one of my favorite books because it helped reinforce the idea that we all have a responsibility to stand up for ourselves and others. Mack stood up for himself and all his turtle friends so they could all go back to being happy in their turtle pond. Dr. Seuss reminds his readers to hold their values close to their hearts and remember that we are all equal. Take some time to read this with your child and help teach them how important it is to be true to their self!
Yertle the Turtle The eponymous story revolves around a Yertle the Turtle, the king of the pond. Unsatisfied with the stone that serves as his throne, he commands the other turtles to stack themselves beneath him so that he can see further and expand his kingdom. However, the stacked turtles are in pain and Mack, the turtle at the very bottom of the pile, is suffering the most. Mack asks Yertle for a respite, but Yertle just tells him to be quiet. Then Yertle decides to expand his kingdom and commands more and more turtles to add to his throne. Mack makes a second request for a respite because the increased weight is now causing extreme pain to the turtles at the bottom of the pile. Again Yertle yells at Mack to be quiet. Then Yertle notices the moon rising above him as the night approaches. Furious that something "dares to be higher than Yertle the King", he decides to call for even more turtles in an attempt to rise above it. However, before he can give the command, Mack decides he has had enough. He burps, which takes away Yertle's throne and tossing the turtle king off the turtle stack into the mud, leaving him "King of the Mud" and freeing the others.
Shello there! Yertle Turtle Plush Toy will instantly win a child's heart with his ultra-plush design and friendly face. The captivating coral color makes this one-of-a-kind stuffed animal turtle-y awesome. Lovable and huggable, Mon Ami's turtle plush toy is the ideal baby shower, birthday or holiday present. Our turtle stuffed animal is not only a luxe gift but the ultimate cuddle buddy, destined for years of love and adventures.
These stories were originally copyrighted by the McCall Corporation in 1950 and 1951, with the copyright reverting to Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss) and his wife, Audrey, in 1958. While the first story could have stood on its own, the other two are weaker and lack the cadence and charm that makes Seuss so adored. Yet, in some ways, the other two stories are variations on Yertle, and belong close to it.
The first story is the one that is best known and best written. It talks about the king of the turtles, Yertle. He likes his pond and he rules it well, but power corrupts, and Yertle wants more. He builds his throne up, knowing that he will be able to rule all that he can see. But his throne is made of fellow turtles. Only through tyranny is he able to build his kingdom and he goes from the happy smiling turtle in the beginning to the snarly, snappy turtle toward the end.
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Yertle the TurtleAlbumFreaky StyleyRelease dateAugust 16, 1985Length3:38ProductionWritten byDr. SeussVocals byAnthony KiedisGuitarHillel SlovakBassFleaDrumsCliff MartinezAlbum TracksPreviousNextThirty Dirty Birds
13N/A
Yertle the Turtle is the fourteenth and final track from the band's second studio album, Freaky Styley. It is an adaptation of the classic children story made by Dr. Seuss of the same name as the song.
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