There's no question in my mind. Goodnight Moon, the children's book by Margaret Wise Brown (pictures by Clement Hurd) is a socialist manifesto.

You remember this book right? It's the classic children's book, first published in 1947, in which the narrator describes all of the things in the "great green room" and then says goodnight to each of them. There's a little bunny in blue-striped pajamas being tucked into bed. It's adorable, and it is beloved by millions of children throughout the world. It was one of my favorites for many years. Yet, no one has had the vision to perceive its secret agenda until now.

First of all, let's look at the things in the room. You have a red balloon. Doesn't take much imagination to figure what that's all about. From the flag of the USSR to the little red books published by Mao Tse Tung's government, red has been a color directly associated with socialism. Then there's an animal skin rug, and a framed picture of the three bears sitting on chairs. The animal skin is obviously a sign that the effete fat cats of capitalism have been skinned and made inconsequential. As for the three bears, the bear always was a symbol of Russia, am I right? And three bears instead of one? Well, that clearly represents the Russians extending their influence to encompass China and the United States. How do I know it is the United States and not Europe, you ask? If you look closely, one of the bears has its paws crossed in a fashion that can only be described as blatant mimicry of the posture of Harry Truman. Everyone would have recognized this then. It's like if one of the bears had been drawn with one paw inside his jacket.

Then there's the cow jumping over the moon. The farm symbolism and the pile of hay evident in the bottom left corner indicate that the pictured area is an agrarian commune. The moon is turned upward like a sickle. Then there are two little kitten and a pair of mittens. Note that although there are two kittens, they are sharing the mittens. Neither kitten feels it is entitled to sole possession of the pair. There is also a little toy house and a young mouse. The benign coexistence of the kittens and the mouse is intended to demonstrate that all animosities toward other nations and types of people are learned behaviors, not natural ones. In a pure socialist state, the author is trying to tell us, the lion could indeed lay down with the lamb. No person or mouse must be sacrificed for the good of a few wealthy people or mice.

There's also a comb and a brush and a bowl full of mush. These things indicate that although resources will be redistributed, people will still be able to eat. And not only that, but they will still be able to enjoy the niceties of life, such as basic hygiene. Finally, in the great green room, there is a quiet old lady who is whispering "hush." The author clearly believes the best way to achieve this new socialist utopia is to let the revolution occur quietly, with as little noise or bloodshed as possible.

At this point, the author says goodnight to all of these things. "Goodnight room. Goodnight moon. Goodnight cow jumping over the moon. . . . Goodnight stars. Goodnight air. Goodnight noises everywhere." You cannot help but feel that, by saying goodnight, the author is really saying goodbye to the capitalist world she has known. In this goodbye, there is an implied 'hello' to a new age in which socialist ideals rule. What I want to know is: why has no one ever noticed that buried within this sweetly sentimental children's story is a very serious political agenda?

The part of this last section that always struck a chord with me as a child was the "Goodnight nobody, goodnight mush" part. I mean, the bunny just said goodnight to someone who wasn't there. Is this evidence that the athor is leading children into the dark world of nihilism? Of course not, silly. You're reading too much into it.

Tags: books