The Lorax vs. Easter's End In real life and fictional worlds, both past and present, we encounter issues of mass environmental destruction on many levels, down to total extinction of civilization. In the short film The Lorax, the land of Truffula trees is a lush paradise full of happy animals. In the true pre-human land of Easter Island we find a similar paradise. All is well until the human species is thrown into the fray. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The Lorax discusses the rapid decline of a fictional ecosystem. The Onceler, the main antagonist, begins his destruction by cutting down a single Truffula tree. He discovers that he can use the tree's material to make his beloved product, the Thneed. This single action turns into a money-hungry empire run by the Onceler. The other main character, Lorax, who speaks for the trees, desperately tries to stop the Once-ler's reckless greed. Eventually, when resources run out and the environment is depleted, the Once-ler sees his carelessness firsthand. The animals and trees are gone, but with the right person they can all come back. The article Easter's End by Jared Diamond talks about the decline of a true civilization. Unlike the Lorax, Easter Island's demise was a combination of humans and their stowaway mice. The first human settlers found a paradise unlike any other and instead of developing a destructive greed for money, they developed a destructive greed for resources. They used their abundance of resources to live a comfortable life. The people of Easter Island have exhausted every resource to the point of extinction. Rats contributed to the decimation of trees by chewing roots and trunks. But the people of Easter Island weren't as lucky as the Lorax's people, animals, and environment, because once everything was gone, it was gone forever. Even though the Lorax and Easter's End had different key issues, they are both meant to share the same purpose. On a larger scale, both deal with the issues of overuse of resources, pollution and overpopulation. Furthermore, they both demonstrate that something cannot be sustainable on a large scale and in a fast-moving manner. And finally, in any case, both show that human inattention is a big problem. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay So, whether it is true or false, we must take care of the environment because we can easily become the problem. We, as all of humanity, could be the next “Easter Island”. We should not let greed for money or resources lead to such a devastating decline. It may be the industrialization of The Lorax or the survival situation of Easter's End, but one thing is for sure: unlike a candy-coated fictional ending, reality will not give us or our environment a second chance. For once he's gone, he's gone forever.