>>  _The Cat in the Hat_
>>  by Dr. Seuss, 61 pages.  Beginner Books, $3.95
>> 
>>  The Cat in the Hat is a hard-hitting novel of prose and poetry
>>  in which the author re-examines the dynamic rhyming schemes and
>>  bold imagery of some of his earlier works, most notably _Green
>>  Eggs and Ham_, _If I Ran the Zoo_, and _Why Can't I Shower With
>>  Mommy?_  In this novel, Theodore Geisel, writing under the
>>  pseudonym Dr. Seuss, pays homage to the great Dr. Sigmund Freud
>>  in a nightmarish fantasy of a renegade feline helping two young
>>  children understand their own frustrated sexuality.
>> 
>>  The story opens with two youngsters, a brother and a sister,
>>  abandoned by their mother, staring mournfully through the
>>  window of their single-family dwelling.  In the foreground, a
>>  large tree/phallic symbol dances wildly in the wind, taunting
>>  the children and encouraging them to succumb to the sexual
>>  yearnings they undoubtedly feel for each other.  Even to the
>>  most unlearned reader, the blatant references to the
>>  incestuous relationship the two share set the tone for Seuss'
>>  probing examination of the satisfaction of primitive needs.
>>  The Cat proceeds to charm the wary youths into engaging in
>>  what he so innocently refers to as "tricks."  At this point,
>>  the fish, an obvious Christ figure who represents the
>>  prevailing Christian morality, attempts to warn the children,
>>  and thus, in effect, warns all of humanity of the dangers
>>  associated with the unleashing of the primal urges.  In
>>  response to this, the cat proceeds to balance the aquatic
>>  naysayer on the end of his umbrella, essentially saying,
>>  "Down with morality; down with God!"
>> 
>>  After poohpoohing the righteous rantings of the waterlogged
>>  Christ figure, the Cat begins to juggle several icons of
>>  Western culture, most notably two books, representing the Old
>>  and New Testaments, and a saucer of lactal fluid, an ironic
>>  reference to maternal loss the two children experienced when
>>  their mother abandoned them "for the afternoon."  Our heroic
>>  Id adds to this bold gesture a rake and a toy man, and thus
>>  completes the Oedipal triangle.
>> 
>>  Later in the novel, Seuss introduces the proverbial Pandora's
>>  box, a large red crate out of which the Id releases Thing One,
>>  or Freud's concept of Ego, the division of the psyche that
>>  serves as the conscious mediator between the person and
>>  reality, and Thing Two, the Superego which functions to reward
>>  and punish through a system of moral attitudes, conscience,
>>  and guilt.  Referring to this box, the Cat says, "Now look at
>>  this trick.  Take a look!"  In this, Dr. Seuss uses the
>>  children as a brilliant metaphor for the reader, and asks the
>>  reader to re-examine his own inner self.
>> 
>>  The children, unable to control the Id, Ego, and Superego
>>  allow these creatures to run free and mess up the house, or
>>  more symbolically, control their lives.  This rampage
>>  continues until the fish, or Christ symbol, warns that the
>>  mother is returning to reinstate the Oedipal triangle that
>>  existed before her abandonment of the children.  At this
>>  point, Seuss introduces a many-armed cleaning device which
>>  represents the psychoanalytic couch, which proceeds to put
>>  the two youngsters' lives back in order.
>> 
>>  With powerful simplicity, clarity, and drama, Seuss reduces
>>  Freud's concepts on the dynamics of the human psyche to an
>>  easily understood gesture.  Mr. Seuss' poetry and choice of
>>  words is equally impressive and serves as a splendid
>>  counterpart to his bold symbolism.  In all, his writing style
>>  is quick and fluid, making _The Cat in the Hat_ impossible to
>>  put down.  While this novel is 61 pages in length, and one
>>  can read it in five minutes or less, it is not until after
>>  multiple readings that the genius of this modern day master
>>  becomes apparent.