ipl-logo

Meaning Of The Giving Tree By Shel Silverstein

486 Words2 Pages

The “Giving Tree” a children’s book by Shel Silverstein has, arguably a great amount of meaning and ways of interpretation. The most common meaning people interpret it as, is a message on not to be selfish and to be unselfish instead. Although, for me there a three main meanings that I will be discussing right now in the greatest detail that I can. The first and foremost meaning that I find in the “Giving Tree” to be the most obvious other than the common one is to always say please and thank you. The reason I think this is the most obvious meaning is, because every time the boy takes something from the tree he never says please or thank you and eventually the tree has nothing to give him and she feel sad after giving him all she can. Also, she can see that he never appreciates all the stuff she had given him. She let him cut down her branches, take her apples, and at the very end take away her trunk. And when he …show more content…

This can be supported when the boy was just a kid he and the tree were always happy and they both just appreciated each other’s company. However, as the boy grew up he started to appreciate the tree less and less and eventually just using her and taking anything that he wanted. Although, the tree did it just so they could both be happy, just like when the boy was young. Eventually, the boy got old and came to the tree and he didn’t want to play with anything he just wanted to rest. This made the tree happy, because this is one of the things that she could do to make him happy so she let him sit on her stump and they were both happy. In conclusion, there are many ways to interpret the “Giving Tree”. After all the people that have read the story there has been many ways that this story has been interpreted. For example, some say that it’s meaning is to take life easy, but I don’t know I could be wrong. This story is meant to be open to

Show More
Related
1106 Words | 5 Pages

Although the tree may be hard to bear , it mustn't be chopped down because it is equal to that of a family member, Family may be a burden occasionally, but shall never fail and wither away. Mary Oliver shows the importance of the family’s tree by applying to a moral , spiritual , literal , and historical context with the utilization of personification , imagery , and symbolism. The readers view that The moral aspect of this poem is that the mother and daughter , the women of the family are unable to chop the tree down because they believe the tree is what has held the family together for all of this time , and it has so much value to the family. Literally the tree may present a burden to the family due to its age , however historically the tree’s leaves are getting heavier every year because the tree has been been in the family for years. So the weight is associated with all the years the tree has been passed down and the past members of the family.

Read More
1310 Words | 6 Pages

The young boy wanted to give the lady an orange in trade for the chocolate, which shows another representation of how the oranges are shown as a symbol of love. In the last stanza, the girl eats the chocolate while he peels his orange. The poet

Read More
1748 Words | 7 Pages

At its core, “The Black Walnut Tree” is a conflict between the sentimental and what practically needs to be done. Throughout the poem, the author utilizes a very matter-of-fact and almost dismissive tone as the daughter and her mother debate whether or not to sell the tree and finish paying off a loan that they owe. As the poem progresses, this matter-of-fact tone transitions into figurative language as the black walnut tree takes on a more symbolic view. Mary Oliver shows in “The Black Walnut Tree” that the tree symbolizes the family’s heritage and all that their father has sought to accomplish, and, while the mortgage weighs down the family, cutting down and selling the tree would, in a sense, betray the family and what it stands for. Written in free verse, “The Black Walnut Tree” takes a straight forward and casual approach to the topic and is most apparent

Read More
963 Words | 4 Pages

The pear tree represented simplicity and pleasure. Every man Janie had married had been older than her, and not exactly what she had envisioned under the pear tree. Finally, she met Tea Cake and felt the feelings she had been longing

Read More
641 Words | 3 Pages

The author uses of “leaping”, “bounding”, and “generous” to show some of the positive tone shift. This positive tone help show the happy memory that their ancestor experience because of the tree. Because of this sole reason, the characters treasure the tree and decided to keep it there because of the bond it share with the family. The mother and daughter also know that they would, "crawl with shame in the emptiness" meaning that they would be ashamed if they cut the

Read More
834 Words | 4 Pages

In A Christmas Carol, Charles dickens relates themes of Christmas, loneliness and Family, to the overall Theme of Compassion. The book is set during the time of Christmas to symbolize generosity, selflessness and love. While it looks at the world from the eyes of an old, rich, grumpy man, whom is the exact opposite, and has yet to understand what it means to care for others. Dickens uses this character of Scrooge, to symbolize greed, selfishness and hatred that is found in a person and in a society. While he introduces other characters to represent the good that has surrounds him.

Read More
557 Words | 3 Pages

When Nunkie tries to lure Tea Cake with playful acts, and Tea Cake does not fend her off as promptly as Janie wanted him to, Janie feels “[a] little seed of fear was growing into a tree” (136). In other words, Janie starts to feel and develop bigger and growing jealousy and fear of losing Tea Cake because of Nunkie. The metaphor illustrates how Janie feels about such situation with visual matters, seed and tree; seed and tree symbolize the progress and growth. Also, in other perspective, readers can recognize Janie’s true emotion, the love, towards Tea Cake by relating to how Janie feels about losing someone, which she never felt during earlier chapters when she lost two husbands. Summing up the contents, the metaphor used for highlighting that Janie has a bigger love for Tea Cake than she did for any other and jealousy about Nunkie’s action.

Read More
716 Words | 3 Pages

“Mom and Dad smiled at each other and laughed. It was a sound that Tree hadn’t heard from them in the longest time” (132). This shows how Tree wasn’t sure his parents were ever going to get along again, but they end up having a good time. This is an example of how family matters most and hope is always around. This situation gave Tree strength to preserve.

Read More
327 Words | 2 Pages

In regards to Shel Silverstein's work, “The giving tree”. The stories interpretation of the relationship between boy and tree is more dangerous then ecologically sensitive. This relationship is totally one one-sided when comparing the relationship of a parent to a child. The tree represents a maternal figure in the story and does anything to keep the boy happy. Unfortunately, the boy is portrayed as Narcissist and only comes to the tree when he needs or wants something.

Read More
179 Words | 1 Pages

Consequently, the theme not only shows the value of hope, but also how Scrooge had a major change of heart when he received hope. Formerly, Scrooge was very vain and had an abject spirit. His life was without much hope of any happiness. The different themes in “A Christmas Carol” help people like Scrooge to realize how fortunate they are. In addition, Scrooge learns that he is very fortunate to have all of the things he does, and that hope can be the key to happiness.

Read More
571 Words | 3 Pages

1.) a.) An allegory is a story which characters, settings, and events stand for moral concepts. Allegories contain meanings that are symbolic and literal. “The Pardoner’s Tale” is an allegory because the 3 rioters believe in death actually behind the tree.

Read More
1096 Words | 5 Pages

The poem gives more depth to the princess as a character, as well. In the poem, she says, “Divided into two, I am a tree, the branches are too high for me to see, the roots too hidden from reality.” A unique way to think of a tree, it shows intelligence and thoughtfulness and not just naive kindness. Although there are many ways to interpret this line, it is most likely that the roots represent her father and the branches represent her future. The line also has notes of sadness, showing her worry for her father.

Read More
358 Words | 2 Pages

People that love each other unconditionally always provide support and love for that person. In The Giving Tree Shel Silverstein uses the relationship between a tree and a boy to demonstrate unconditional love. As a young boy the tree gives the boy apples to eat and gives him shade to lay under. The boy also has a place to play; ¨Come boy, swing on my branches.”

Read More
1263 Words | 6 Pages

The leaves on the tree represent the happiness Luis could be feeling. Although it would be nearly impossible for him to joyful during the funeral, now he can be full again, just like the tree was bare then, but now filled with leaves. This points to a slightly different theme than before; one regarding releasing one’s past pain and the benefit of moving on.

Read More
699 Words | 3 Pages

“The Sky Tree” reveals beliefs about nature, complex religious beliefs and strong social value. “The Sky Tree” shows animals being involved in everyday life. All the animals including, “Beaver, mink, muskrat brought up paw full of soil and placed on turtle 's back until they had made an island”(20).The earth was formed from the animals. “The Sky Tree” also shows complex religious beliefs. After Old Man decided to cut the tree to survive he “cut the tree, it

Read More

More about Meaning Of The Giving Tree By Shel Silverstein

Related Topics

Open Document