The Giving Tree - Page 3

[beatgirl]

Originally Posted by MamaFern

it is interesting to read what everyone has said here.. i have to say that i have always liked this book.. it is very sad... but the truth is that the world isn't a happy place all the time. people do give and give and give and others take and take and take. its the human condition. i think that this story is an analogy of our world.. i dont think he meant to say that its okay that this is what is happening. i think he wrote it so that people would see this and really think about it. im sure we have all been selfish at one time in our lives. we have all taken too much and forgotten to give back, or even be thankful or grateful. my feeling is that maybe this book was writen for older children who can talk about it with their parents. but in my oppinion it is an important lesson in life. you cant be happy if you never give anything.. money, possessions dont make people happy. only love truly makes people happy.. sadly this boy realised it too late.. but maybe it will help others realise it before it is too late.

Thank you!

[Itlbokay]

I second that

[Mamax3]

nak...this has been a very interesting and enlightening discussion. The Giving Tree is one of my son's favorite books (he is 7).

I love reading SS poetry to my children and imagining to myself what SS was thinking about when he wrote them. I think there are a lot of adult themes in his writing, my kids just love the flow of the writing.

[MamaFern]

i thought i was going to get told off.. i'm glad not

i think its important to read between the lines. the world is way more interesting when you do..

[Still_Snarky]

mamafern

[elyice]

Originally Posted by fluffernutter

Yeah, I do feel like a worn out stump sometimes.

this is my favorite quote. May I make it my siggy?

[ladylee]

that was so well said, Mama Fern. That's the very reason this book means so much to me.

I interpret it in kind of a yogic sense. The tree *chooses* to give unconditionally and selflessly, and is therefore happy and fulfilled. We may project that the tree is taken advantage of by the boy and ends up having nothing in a physical sense, but in fact its spirit is happy. It's also a lovely message about how limited external happiness can be.

[Mamax3]

Originally Posted by elyice

this is my favorite quote. May I make it my siggy?

me too!

[Carolinamidwife]

AWESOME post Mamafern, thank you!

[lisahas2cats]

I've never read "The Giving Tree", but am I the only one left with an unsettled, sad feeling after reading "The Velveteen Rabbit"? Sorry to go OT, but some of the feelings you guys describe about "Tree" sound like feelings I have when I read "Rabbit".

Lisa

[IdentityCrisisMama]

Yes, I know the story but can't remember. The child gets sick and then the rabbit turns real and the boy doesn't recognize him? But it’s the parents who give the rabbit away, no?



There’s Puff, too.

[jlspalding]

I didn't read this book untill I was an adult. I was going through it for the first time, and right before the end, I was thinking to myself, "oh, he's going to come back and take care of the tree, now that the tree is old." He didn't. I was kind of shocked and immediatly thought of my own mother, who is a marty-mom who has trouble setting boundaries.

I think it could be a metaphor for nature, the boy being mankind and the tree being nature itself, in a theme similar to "The Lorax".

The unconditional love thing doesn't sit well with me, I have to side with "GuerillaMom" on that.

Jessica

[Itlbokay]

This is what is great about books, the messages in them can have many interpretations.

Perhaps old Shel didn't give many interviews for a reason, maybe he wanted people to derive from this story what they wanted based off of their own experiences. My children don't see this book in the same manner I do, just as each of us here has their own way of "seeing" the different meanings and metaphors.

Sometimes I read it and see the tree as a parent...sometimes I read it and see the tree as nature....I like that about it, you can let it represent whatever you want, and we don't have to agree upon it.