Did you read Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham as a child?
“Yes” would be my guess.
Who isn’t familiar with the book for early readers, first published in 1960?
If you’re the exception (or your memory needs a refresh), the story has Sam-I-Am begging his unnamed companion to try an unappetizing looking plate of green eggs and ham. Refusing to take “no” for an answer, Sam-I-Am follows that poor fellow here, there, and everywhere, all the while prodding him to reconsider—as if a change of place would somehow make the dish more enticing.
Repetition
Employing a masterful mix of rhythm, rhyme, and repetition, Green Eggs and Ham is an easy, breezy story for youngsters to memorize. Also, the book fosters sight reading by using only fifty unique words in a total of eight hundred. It is the most popular of Dr. Seuss’s collective works and ranks fourth among the top bestselling children’s hardcopy books in the U.S.
By 2000, over eight million copies were reportedly sold in the U.S. alone. Adding international sales to the tally, the updated estimate well exceeds one hundred million, likely double that with resales.
Therefore, how many people would you say have been exposed to the iconic Sam-I-Am and his persistent “try it, you’ll like it” message?
Before making a wild guess, consider that privately owned copies are generally shared within families and often handed down. Further, libraries and classrooms also keep the classic on hand.
Narrowing the group to individuals living today who are twenty-one and older, I asked AI to do a calculation. Apparently, the number of adults who have been influenced by Sam-I-Am is close to one billion. That’s almost one-sixth of the world’s adult’s population!
Oh, Sam-I-Am, what have you done!
My Beef with Sam-I-Am
Although Green Eggs and Ham was a staple in my family, I never much cared for the lead character. His pushiness was off-putting to me. If he had pursued me with that plate of greens, I would have said, “No means no. Away you go!”
But in the story, he does not go away. Further, Sam-I-Am’s browbeaten target gives in. Not only that, after reluctantly tasting green eggs and ham, he likes it.
Yippee!
The lesson is simple: taste new foods, including the green ones, because they could be delicious. If you never try, you’ll never know.
I have no issue with that. My beef with Sam-I-Am is his methodology.
Spam-I-Am
Thanks to Sam-I-Am, how many kids worldwide grew up thinking that the art of persuasion was all about pestering people?
In this age of being bombarded by calls, texts, DMs, and emails that we do our best to ignore, block, and outright shoo away, simply because we don’t want the “green eggs and ham” they are pitching, are you as worn out as I am?
It doesn’t stop!
Sam-I-Am must accept his share of the responsibility. Think about it: one-sixth of the world’s adult population had him as a role model!
In all deference to Dr. Seuss, if I were inclined to write a children’s book, the villain would be Spam-I-Am. Instead of succeeding by compelling his mark to agree that his “green eggs and ham” was the best thing since sliced bread, he would end up alone in the dark with not even a mouse or goat to keep him company.
Is that too harsh? Okay, here’s my happy ending:
Spam-I-Am reflects on his behavior and realizes he can greatly expand his influence if he qualifies his prospects, respects their boundaries, and backs off when they say “no.”
Thoughts or questions? Please contact Sallie Boyles, owner of Write Lady Inc., to exchange ideas about effective communications and gain from professional writing and editing services. Receive monthly tips and insights by subscribing at https://WriteLady.com.
