Explicating Greed in the Works of Shel Silverstein Shel Silverstein was a 20th century American poet who brought to the world many beloved classics such as the poems “Presents, Presents, Presents,” “Captain Morgan’s Curse,” and “Recipe for a Hippopotamus Sandwich.” Silverstein, or Uncle Shelby as he was referred to by children fond of his work, frequently explored the theme of greed and its dangers in his poetry. Silverstein’s poem “Presents, Presents, Presents” portrays greed in the form of mounds material objects that are disrupting the speaker’s life. The speaker, likely a child as s/he mentions “I can’t get out to go to school” (line 13), speaks to an audience about the dangers of owning too many possessions. The child tells of the overwhelming
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The emphasis in the italicized word “anywhere” makes it seem as if the speaker is stuck and cannot move, further emphasized by the metaphorical comparison of being a “prisoner” (19). Silverstein is trying to say that having too many presents can leave one “stuck” and unable to move under the weight of how much they own, so much so, to the point that they cannot function in their daily lives. The speaker states “That I can’t get near my bed” (4), meaning that they cannot rest and are prevented from doing one of the most basic acts of the day: sleeping. The lines “I can’t get to the kitchen / And I’m starvin’ for some food” (9 - 10) are saying that the speaker cannot gain access to food under the weight of all of their presents, regardless of the fact that they are starving, because of the sheer volume …show more content…
The poem takes the form of a recipe, splitting each step into a simple, seemingly easy goal to accomplish. After all, anyone can acquire “One slice of bread, / One slice of cake, / Some mayonnaise / One onion ring,” (lines 3-6), and “One piece of string, / A dash of pepper” (8-9). One ingredient does stand out, “One hippopotamus” (7), as a hippopotamus is neither a common, nor easily obtainable ingredient, and it is far too large to eat; however, those are the steps to making the sandwich. Silverstein makes the act of gathering those ingredients seem extremely simplistic, to the point that a child could obtain them, but throws in an obviously absurd one, one that might take much too long to acquire; even if one were to be able to acquire a hippopotamus to place in the sandwich, “And now comes the problem… / Biting into it!” (11-12). Silverstein is trying to show that one should worry about the end goal, even if the steps of it are relatively simple. What is the point, he is asking, of following steps to obtain something that one neither needs, nor could possibly
The emphasis in the italicized word “anywhere” makes it seem as if the speaker is stuck and cannot move, further emphasized by the metaphorical comparison of being a “prisoner” (19). Silverstein is trying to say that having too many presents can leave one “stuck” and unable to move under the weight of how much they own, so much so, to the point that they cannot function in their daily lives. The speaker states “That I can’t get near my bed” (4), meaning that they cannot rest and are prevented from doing one of the most basic acts of the day: sleeping. The lines “I can’t get to the kitchen / And I’m starvin’ for some food” (9 - 10) are saying that the speaker cannot gain access to food under the weight of all of their presents, regardless of the fact that they are starving, because of the sheer volume …show more content…
The poem takes the form of a recipe, splitting each step into a simple, seemingly easy goal to accomplish. After all, anyone can acquire “One slice of bread, / One slice of cake, / Some mayonnaise / One onion ring,” (lines 3-6), and “One piece of string, / A dash of pepper” (8-9). One ingredient does stand out, “One hippopotamus” (7), as a hippopotamus is neither a common, nor easily obtainable ingredient, and it is far too large to eat; however, those are the steps to making the sandwich. Silverstein makes the act of gathering those ingredients seem extremely simplistic, to the point that a child could obtain them, but throws in an obviously absurd one, one that might take much too long to acquire; even if one were to be able to acquire a hippopotamus to place in the sandwich, “And now comes the problem… / Biting into it!” (11-12). Silverstein is trying to show that one should worry about the end goal, even if the steps of it are relatively simple. What is the point, he is asking, of following steps to obtain something that one neither needs, nor could possibly