ACADEMIA Edition

Publisher:ANDREJEVI] ENDOWMENT
11120 Beograd, Dr`i}eva 11
Phone No.: 011/2401-045, 2406-909,
2403-820
Fax: 011/2401-045
e-mail: zandrejevic@gmail.com
www.zandrejevic.rs
Editor in Chief
Kosta Andrejevi}, PhD
Editorial Board of the
DISSERTATIO Edition
Academician Svetomir Sto`ini},
President
Lidija Amid`i}, PhD, Vice President
Svetlana Grdovi}, PhD
Dragutin Lj. Debeljkovi}, PhD
Radmila Dragutinovi}-Mitrovi}, PhD
Du{an Draji}, PhD
Dragomir \or|evi}, PhD
Aleksandar Ignjatovi}, PhD
Du{ica Le~i}-To{evski, PhD
Boris Lon~ar, PhD
Zoran Ma{i}, PhD
Zdravko Mijailovi}, PhD
Nade`da Nedeljkovi}, PhD
Luka ^. Popovi}, PhD
Mirjana Sovilj, PhD
Du{an Star~evi}, PhD
Irina Suboti}, PhD
Aleksandra Vrane{, PhD
Author
Danijela Pro{i}-Santovac, MPhil
Home and School Use of Mother Goose
Reviewers
Aleksandra Izgarjan, PhD, Assistant
Professor
Prvoslav Jankovi}, PhD, Full Professor
Maja Markovi}, PhD, Assistant
Professor
Editor
Tatjana Andrejevi}
Lecture
Tatjana Andrejevi}
Layout and Prepress
Andrejevi} Endowment
Sandra Aleksi}
Front cover illustration
Illustrated by the author
Printed by
Todra plus, Belgrade
Copies printed
500
ISSN 1450-653X
ISBN 978-86-7244-788-0
Copyright Andrejevi} Endowment, 2009
EDITION
ACADEMIA
Belgrade, 2009
Andrejevi} Endowment
Home and School Use
of Mother Goose
Danijela Pro{i}-Santovac, MPhil
to my husband
5
Contents
Preface 6
1. Abstract 7
2. Sa`etak 8
3. Introducing Mother Goose 9
3.1 Mother Goose as inspiration 14
3.2 Inspiration for Mother Goose 17
3.3 History through the eyes of Mother Goose 24
4. Growing up with Mother Goose 36
4.1 Presenting death as acceptable part of life 37
4.2 Encouraging harmonious relationships 39
4.3 The value of introspection 41
4.4 Understanding and expressing emotions 42
4.5 Parent-child bonding 43
4.6 Absence of a parent 45
5. Learning English with Mother Goose 48
5. 1 Developing listening and speaking skills 52
5. 2 Developing reading and writing skills 57
6. Notes 65
7. References 70
8. Index of first lines 75
9. Rezime 79
6
Preface
C
hildrens literature today is so extensive that it is difficult to imagine a time
when it was not an everyday part of life or did not even exist. However, until
comparatively recent times, it remained marginalized in the world of literary
criticism. In the plethora of texts constituting childrens literature, there seems
to be a hierarchy, assigning greater importance and value to childrens novels,
for example, or even poetry written for children by renowned authors, in
comparison with the nursery rhymes that are most often of anonymous origin.
They are still considered trifles by many in comparison with the more serious
literature, and they dwell on the margins of childrens literature, only sporadically
finding their way into academic courses mostly dealing with novels.
Because nursery rhymes belong to the earliest part of childhood, they are held
to be an ephemeral element of childrens literature, whose impact on children is
undoubtedly acknowledged, but whose substance is ineffable. The common conviction
regarding the futility of studying the inexpressible and indefinable nature of nursery
rhymes is best expressed through the words of Eulalie Osgood Grover (1873-1958),
the editor of Mother Goose: The Original Volland Edition (1915):
It is useless to try to explain the charm of these nonsense melodies. The children
themselves do not know why they love them. No mother can tell us the magic of
the spell which seems to be cast over her restless baby as she croons to it a
Mother Goose lullaby. No primary teacher quite understands why the mere
repetition or singing of a Mother Goose jingle will transform her listless, inattentive
class into one all eagerness and attention.
1
The aim of this book is to prove this statement wrong, and to determine
whether, and how nursery rhymes cast the magic of the spell, what the power
of nursery rhymes in classroom is, and how they contribute to the overall
development of children.
However, that task would not have been possible without the people whose
precious help the book benefited from. First of all, I am indebted to Melanija
Mike{, PhD () for planting the seed of the idea that grew into this book. I owe
my gratitude to my supervisor Vladislava Felbabov, PhD, for her constant support.
My thanks also goes to Prvoslav Jankovi}, PhD, who introduced me into the
world of academic writing. In the course of conceiving this book, several people
provided various forms of assistance: Vladislava Gordi}-Petkovi}, PhD, Gordana
Petri~i}, PhD, Aleksandra Izgarjan, PhD, Maja Markovi}, PhD, and, last, but
not least, Diana Prodanovi}-Stanki}, MPhil.
All errors and interpretations are, of course, my own.
77
1.
Abstract
T
his book deals with different aspects of traditional Anglo-American corpus
of Mother Goose nursery rhymes and several possibilities of their use, both
in teaching and upbringing of children. It explores the origin of the Mother
Goose name, offers an insight into various collections of nursery rhymes, and
lists the most prominent illustrators and potential authors of some of the rhymes,
otherwise anonymous in origin. Furthermore, it examines the relationship of
nursery rhymes and other works of art, as well as the derivation of nursery rhymes
from other literary works. Possible references in nursery rhymes to real people
and events in history are discussed as well. The book also aims to establish the
role that nursery rhymes can have in English language teaching of children at
preschool and early school age, both in terms of vocabulary development and
the development of the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing. In
addition, it focuses on the educational factor of nursery rhymes, in terms of
forming the character and value system of a child, since their content sends
indirect messages to a young developing mind, just as efficiently as direct teaching
does. Generally, the incorporated messages are effective because they are not
explicitly expressed, and therefore, they are unconsciously incorporated into a
childs personality, without further questioning. The book also tackles the ways
in which nursery rhymes can be used to help children develop the skill of
understanding and expressing their emotions, while shedding some light on the
potential of nursery rhymes to affect the quality of the relationships within a
family, in terms of bonding between parents and their children, as well as in
situations when a parent is absent, either due to divorce or due to death. In this
way, nursery rhymes are presented to the reader from the standpoint of applied
linguistics, pedagogy and psychology.
1. nursery rhymes
2. Mother Goose
3. preschool age
4. early school age
5. pedagogical messages
6. psychological aspects
7. English language
teaching
8. historical origin
Key words:
8
2.
Sa`etak
U
monografiji se daje pregled razli~itih aspekata i mogu}nosti vaspitno-
obrazovne upotrebe pesama za decu iz tradicionalnog anglo-ameri~kog
korpusa pod nazivom Majka guska. Istra`uje se poreklo naziva samog korpusa,
daje uvid u postojanje razli~itih zbirki ovih pesama, navode najpoznatiji ilustratori,
kao i potencijalni autori nekih od pesama, koje su ina~e uglavnom anonimnog
porekla. Nadalje, ispituje se odnos pesama za decu i drugih knji`evnih dela, kao
i dela od kojih su nastale neke od pesama. Tako|e, utvr|uje se i potencijalna
utemeljenost tvrdnji da neke pesme vode poreklo od stvarnih istorijskih li~nosti
i doga|aja. Monografija se bavi i obrazovnom ulogom pesama Majke guske u
nastavi engleskog jezika na pred{kolskom i ranom {kolskom uzrastu, kako u
pogledu rada na razvoju vokabulara, tako i u pogledu razvoja ve{tine slu{anja,
govora, ~itanja i pisanja. Tako|e, obra|uje se i vaspitni uticaj ovih pesama, u
smislu formiranja karaktera i vrednosnog sistema deteta, jer one, jednako kao i
neposredne pouke vaspita~a, svojim sadr`ajem prenose indirektne poruke mladom
umu u razvoju. Samim tim {to nisu eksplicitno izra`ene, te poruke su jo{ mo}nije,
jer se nesvesno inkorporiraju u li~nost, bez preispitivanja. Razmatra se i mogu}a
upotreba pesama u cilju pru`anja pomo}i deci pri razvijanju ve{tine razumevanja
i izra`avanja sopstvenih ose}anja. Tako|e, rasvetljava se i njihov potencijal da
uti~u na kvalitet odnosa u okviru porodice, u smislu stvaranja veze izme|u
roditelja i dece, kao i u situacijama kada je jedan od roditelja odsutan, usled
razvoda ili smrti. Na taj na~in, ove pesme se pribli`avaju ~itaocu kako iz aspekta
primenjene lingvistike, tako i iz aspekta pedagogije i psihologije.
1. pesme za decu
2. Majka guska
3. pred{kolski uzrast
4. rani {kolski uzrast
5. pedago{ke poruke
6. psiholo{ki aspekti
7. nastava engleskog
jezika
8. istorijsko poreklo
Klju~ne re~i:
9
3.
Introducing Mother Goose
No, no my Melodies will never die,
While nurses sing, or babies cry.
Mother Goose
N
onsense jingles, humorous songs, character rhymes, lullabies, infant
amusements, nursery counting-out formulas, riddles, tongue twisters, nursery
prayers, singing games, folk rhymes, rhymes of divination, magic spells, toe-
counting rhymes, feature naming rhymes, alphabet rhymes, catches, incantations,
proverbs in verse, weather lore in doggerel, self-evident propositions, taunting
rhymes, and many more, are all offered a welcoming wing by Mother Goose,
and, despite their diversity, all go under one broad term of nursery rhymes.
In earlier past, these rhymes used to be known simply as songs or ditties,
while the eighteenth century added the names such as Tommy Thumbs songs,
or Mother Gooses, which is the title still used in America, whereas in Britain
the term is just nursery rhymes, thought by Iona and Peter Opie to have come
into use through Ann and Jane Taylors Rhymes for the Nursery (1806) and the
shortened title printed on its spine - Nursery Rhymes. The term Mother Goose,
on the other hand, is one which arises far more controversy. Katherine Elwes
Thomas suggests that it belongs to French and not English tradition. This assertion
is based on the fact that it was not until 1697 that it appeared in print, and even
then, it did not appear in connection with nursery rhymes, but in Charles Perraults
Les Contes de ma mere lOye (Tales of Mother Goose). She further connects the
term with the French, by stating that the term actually refers to Queen Bertha,
the wife of Robert II of France (c.970-1031), who was, according to the legend,
in such a close, incestuous relationship with her husbands that she gave birth
to a child with the head of a goose. According to William and Ceil Baring-Gould,
there was another Queen Bertha, who died in 783, King Charlemagnes mother
and a protector of children, nicknamed Queen Goose Foot because of her feet
which were said to resemble those of a goose.
The name Bertha is also associated with German Fru Gode or Fru Gosen,
an old Teutonic goddess named Frau Berhta or Perhta in southern Germany and
Tyrol, who has a special relation to spinning and is the guardian of the souls
of children who have died unbaptized.
2
However, apart from a mere two or
three points of vague and superficial resemblance, it is difficult to see further
connection of Mother Goose and Fru Gosen, as the latter is described as a
mythical being who, during the twelve days of Christmas, rides through the air
with her dogs, who are supposed to be her bewitched daughters, and
[] on Christmas night, or the last night of the year, she likes to traverse the
streets of the village, and where she finds a house-door open, she sends in a little
dog. In the morning [it] comes wagging its tail to the inhabitant; it does no harm
beyond disturbing the nocturnal quiet by its whining. It will be neither appeased
nor driven away. If any one kills it, it will by day be changed into a stone, which,
if thrown away, will return to the house and again become a dog. This dog will
whine and moan during the whole year, bring disease and death to man and
beast, and peril of fire on the house; and not till the return of the twelve days
will the house regain its quiet. Hence every one takes especial care, both morning
and evening, to keep the house-door well-closed. Some people were once foolish
enough to kill the dog, but from that day they never prospered, and at length
their house was burnt to the ground.
3
A somewhat more plausible claim, but still a relatively feeble one, is that of
English scholars who claim that Mother Goose was actually Martha Gooch,
who lived in Sussex at the beginning of the eighteenth century. Having worked
as a nurse whose job was to look after the newly-born babies, she was named
Mother Gooch after being in the service for a long time. According to L. Frank
Baum, this good woman had one peculiarity: she was accustomed to croon queer
rhymes and jingles over the cradles of her charges, and these rhymes seemed
so senseless and silly to the people who overheard them that they began to call
her Mother Goose. His story further claims that Ronald Barclay, whose child
she was nursing, wrote down the rhymes, and published them in 1712, under the
name of Ye Melodious Rhymes of Mother Goose. However, even this story of
Martha Gooch is based upon very meager and unsatisfactory evidence.
4
Another claim over Mother Gooses identity is that of American scholars,
who maintain that the name originally belonged to a woman from Charleston,
Elizabeth Foster Goose (1665-1756/7?), the wife of Isaac Goose from Boston,
who, upon the marriage, became the step-mother of ten, and the mother of six.
After one of her daughters, Elizabeth as well, married Thomas Fleet, a printer in
Pudding Lane, Boston, in 1715, she became the grandmother to six of their children.
Allegedly, Thomas Fleet collected the rhymes that his mother-in-law sang to her
grandchildren, and published them in 1719, under the title Songs for the Nursery,
or Mother Gooses Melodies - a book which has never been recovered, and is
considered the most elusive ghost volume in the history of American letters.
5
As a consequence, the story is genealogically verifiable, but not bibliographically.
The earliest English edition, bibliographically verifiable, though not recoverable,
that bears the name of Mother Goose in its title is John Newberys Mother
Gooses Melody, or Sonnets for the Cradle (1760), whereas the earliest surviving
copy, according to the Opies, is an American edition published in 1786 by the
printer Isaiah Thomas from Massachusetts.
However, there are several instances of rhymes occurring in print on their own
as much as two centuries before those dates:
Multiplication is vexation,
Division is as bad;
The Rule of Three doth puzzle me,
And Fractions drive me mad.
6
10
According to James Halliwell, this rhyme was found in a manuscript dated as
far back as 1570, while the old song of the Carrion crow sat on an oak, was
discovered by [him] in MS. Sloane 1489 [] but under a different form:
Hic, hoc, the carrion crow,
For I have shot something too low:
I have quite missed my mark,
And shot the poor sow to the heart;
Wife, bring treacle in a spoon,
Or else the poor sows heart will down.
7
The year 1702 saw the appearance of the very first childrens book of nursery
rhymes, twelve pages long, under the title A Little Book for Little Children, compiled
or written by the near-anonymous author T. W. It was followed, more than forty
years later, by Tommy Thumbs Pretty Song Book (c.1744), comprised of two-
volumes, of which only the second one is preserved in the British Museum. The
collector of these rhymes is Nurse Lovechild, which, in Iona and Peter Opies
opinion, may have been a pseudonym of Mary Cooper, the publisher. Published
around 1760, by Robert Baldwin, Stanley Crowder and Benjamin Collins, The Top
Book of All, for Little Masters and Misses, sixty-two pages long, is the first
compilation to mention the name of Mother Goose in its subtitle: Containing the
choicest stories, prettiest Poems and most diverting Riddles; all wrote by Nurse
Lovechild, Mother Goose, Jacky Nory, Tommy Thumb, and other eminent Authors.
Around the same year, Mother Goose was first singled out as the sole author
in the already mentioned Mother Gooses Melody, or Sonnets for the Cradle
(1760) which produced further editions by Newberys grandson, Francis Power
(1791), and, afterwards, by John Marshall. In America, after Isaiah Jones, numerous
reprints occurred in Boston and New York, in 1825 and 1833, and no doubt it
is a sign of the influence of these collections that in America the rhymes continue
to be thought of as belonging to Mother Goose.
8
This collection motivated others to collect rhymes. In 1784, Gammer Gurtons
Garland, or, the Nursery Parnassus was published by Joseph Ritson, a reputable
antiquary. Another important collector, nicknamed Father Goose by the Baring-
Goulds because he was the first scholar who tried to make a comprehensive
collection, was James Orchard Halliwell-Phillips, who issued The Nursery Rhymes
of England, Obtained principally from Oral Tradition (1842, 1843, 1844, 1846,
1853, c.1860), and classified the rhymes into sections according to specific criteria:
Historical, Tales, Jingles, Riddles, Proverbs, Lullabies, Charms, Games, Paradoxes,
Literal, Scholastic, Customs, Songs, Fragments, and Translations. This was
followed by Popular Rhymes and Nursery Tales: A Sequel to the Nursery Rhymes
of England (1849, c.1860), with a much more extensive analysis and a somewhat
different division: Nursery Antiquities, Fireside Nursery Stories, Game-Rhymes,
Alphabet-Rhymes, Riddle-Rhymes, Nature-Songs, Proverb-Rhymes, Places and
Families, Superstition-Rhymes, Custom-Rhymes, and Nursery-Songs.
The twentieth century brought about collections even more comprehensive
than the previous ones. Iona and Peter Opie arranged their 549 rhymes in a
different way, publishing The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes (1951) with
rhymes in alphabetical order, according to the key word, because, in their opinion,
nursery rhymes may be gathered but they defy regimentation.
9
The Oxford
Nursery Rhymes Book followed in 1955, with a corpus of 800 rhymes. In 1962
11
William S. and Ceil Barring-Gould further enlarged the corpus by 84 rhymes in
The Annotated Mother Goose: Nursery rhymes old and new, arranged and
explained. The innovativeness of their approach lies in the fact that they tried to
order the rhymes chronologically, in accordance with the approximate date of
their first appearance in print, from Tommy Thumbs Pretty Song Book (c.1744)
to the more modern collections of the twentieth century. Another singular approach
was that of Katherine Elwes Thomas, who presented the rhymes chronologically
as well, though not in terms of the publishing date, but rather in terms of historical
events she thought instigated and inspired the content of the rhymes compiled
and analysed. Her book, both of and about the rhymes, The Real Personages of
Mother Goose (1930), is a detailed representation of the rhymes fitted into the
historical framework, sometimes with reasonable evidence as support, and
sometimes without sufficient justification, due to her overzealous[ness ] in
reading meaning into rhymes where no meaning was ever intended.
10
However, the popularity of Mother Gooses rhymes would not have been so
immense, had it not been for much less comprehensive works - chapbooks with
a smaller number of rhymes included, but much easier to obtain, both because
of their low cost and because of their availability. The first toy books emerged
in the nineteenth century, such as Old nursery rhymes (1880) from Aunt Louisas
London Toy Books, or Nursery rhymes (1880) from Play Time Toy Books,
published by Frederick Warne & Co, London. Illustrations that accompanied the
rhymes grew richer as time went by, ranging from the black and white woodcuts
to the near-photographic art of Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966).
The significance of visual experience was immediately recognised and the
number of illustrators grew accordingly. Some of the best-known artists of the
nineteenth century whose work adorned the booklets of nursery rhymes were
Walter Crane (1845-1915), whose scenes from everyday life bring memories
long lost, and Randolph Caldecott (1846-1886) with his detailed, lifelike drawings.
12
Figure 1. Woodcut from Tommy Thumbs Song-Book (1815): Baby on the Tree Top
The emergence of colour printing in the 1870s created thus-far unknown
possibilities to be further exploited in the centuries to come. Kate Greenaway
(1846-1901), who carefully designed the clothes for children in her pictures, by
doing so, unwittingly became an extremely successful amateur designer, for
mothers in England, on the Continent, and in the United States hastened to copy
her styles for their own children.
11
The beginning of the twentieth century produced artists of equal merit. William
Wallace Denslow (1856-1915) created pictures in a style well adapted to childrens
cognitive abilities, without excessive details to confuse the young mind and draw
attention away from the main theme.
Pristine natural scenes laden with lively colours, combined with hardly noticeable
fantastic additions, characterise the artistic expression of Jessie Willcox Smith
(1863-1935), while probably the most famous illustrator of nursery rhymes,
Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) created extremely realistic, as well as completely
fantastic pictures, adapting their features to suit his purpose to a great effect.
It was often the case that the illustrators were also the editors, or compilers of
the rhymes, mostly by anonymous authors. However, not all the rhymes were of
unknown origin; there are writers who are believed to be the authors of some of
the rhymes that can be found inside Mother Goose nursery collections. For
example, according to the Baring-Goulds, it is some scholars opinion that
Shakespeare was one of the writers who contributed to Mother Goose corpus by
writing some rhymes in Newberys Mother Gooses Melody: or Sonnets for the
Cradle. Others that can claim authorship with far more certainty are William
Miller (1810-1872), who composed Wee Willie Winkie, Eliza Follen (1787-
1860), the author of Three Little Kittens They Lost Their Mittens, Septimus
Winter (1826-1902), with Oh where, oh where has my little dog gone and now
controversial Ten Little Injuns written for the minstrel shows of the 1860s, Henry
13
Figure 2. Illustration by Kate Greenaway from Mother Goose, or the Old Nursery
Rhymes (1900): Little Bo-peep
Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), and There was a little girl, and she had a
little curl, William Roscoe (1782-1843) who wrote The Butterflys Ball and the
Grasshoppers Feast in 1807, Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879) whose Mary had
a little lamb gained great popularity ever since its first appearance in 1830, and
Mary Howitt (1799-1888) with her fable-like rhyme The Spider and the Fly.
12
3.1 Mother Goose as inspiration
Over the centuries, nursery rhymes have been both the inspiration for and
inspired by other literary works. Borrowing the idea from Mother Goose, L.
Frank Baum (1856-1919) created Father Goose: His Book (c.1900), and wrote
other nursery rhymes - some of them famous today, like Polly wants a cracker,
with illustrations similar to those of Mother Goose. Baum also found immediate
inspiration in the old rhymes, expanding their stories in Mother Goose in Prose
(1901), with an almost apologetic introduction:
Many of these nursery rhymes are complete tales in themselves, telling their
story tersely but completely; there are others which are but bare suggestions,
leaving the imagination to weave in the details of the story. Perhaps therein may
lie part of their charm, but however that may be I have thought the children
might like the stories told at greater length, that they may dwell the longer upon
their favorite heroes and heroines. For that reason I have written this book. In
making the stories I have followed mainly the suggestions of the rhymes, and my
hope is that the little ones will like them, and not find that they interfere with the
fanciful creations of their own imaginations.
13
Lewis Carroll (1832-1898), in Alice in Wonderland (1865), developed the
stories of nursery rhyme characters in a similar manner. It is easy to notice the
close connection of the plot and some of the main characters with those of the
nursery rhyme:
14
Figure 3. Illustration by William Wallace Denslow from Denslows Mother Goose
(1901): Baa, baa, black sheep
The Queen of Hearts
She made some tarts,
All on a summers day.
The Knave of Hearts,
He stole the tarts,
And took them clean away.
The King of Hearts,
Called for the tarts,
And beat the Knave full sore.
The Knave of Hearts
Brought back the tarts,
And vowd hed steal no more.
14
A slightly less obvious, but still a strong connection, if only in the form of an
idea for the personality characteristics of the main character, at least at the
beginning of the novel, as well as the main setting, can be found between Francis
Burnetts (1849-1924) The Secret garden (1911) and the nursery rhyme:
Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells and cockle shells,
And pretty maids all in a row.
15
In 1950, the accumulative rhyme The house that Jack built inspired the
creation of a poem dedicated to Ezra Pound, Visits to St. Elizabeths, by Elizabeth
Bishop (1911-1979), with the same accumulative pattern, which enlivens the
description of the grim atmosphere of a mental asylum. Another work that took
its inspiration from the same rhyme is a modern picture book dealing with
environmental issues, by Ruth Brown, The World That Jack Built (1991), set in
the English countryside, with a cat and a butterfly as the leading characters who
start out their story in a springtime scene that implies order and serenity, just
as Ruth Browns use of the traditional rhyme The House That Jack Built promises
a cumulative pattern that begins and ends with a house [...] set squarely on green
lawns and framed by a garden.
16
As the story develops, the pristine nature is
desecrated and gradually transformed into a heavily polluted environment with
a culmination of a stream laden with chemicals from the factory that Jack built.
Modern environment with its media, different from those of the previous
centuries, led to transferring Mother Goose from book pages to television
screens in 1933, with the cartoon Betty Boop: Mother Goose Land, directed by
Dave Fleisher. Betty, while sitting in her room and reading a Mother Goose
book, dreams of being able to visit the place where nursery rhyme characters
live. Her wish is granted when Mother Goose suddenly comes out of the book,
growing to Bettys size, and leads her on a tour of Mother Goose Land. They
ride on a broom and Betty has fun until a spider chases her away, just like Little
Miss Muffet. This was followed by another cartoon, Walt Disneys Mother Goose
Goes to Hollywood (1938), where nursery rhyme characters are represented by
caricatures of Hollywood stars, such as Katherine Hepburn, the Marx Brothers,
Clark Gable, Fred Astaire, Greta Garbo, Cab Calloway, and many others. Ray
Harryhousens Mother Goose Stories (1946), on the other hand, presents its
characters as faithfully as possible, sticking to the original stories of the rhymes;
therefore, the viewer first sees a line of the text, followed by three dimensional
animations, presenting successively little Miss Muffet, old Mother Hubbard,
Queen of Hearts, and Humpty Dumpty. In 1957, Walt Disney returns to this
15
theme creating The Truth about Mother Goose, which tells stories that are
popularly believed to be behind three of the Mother Goose rhymes: Little Jack
Horner, Mary, Mary quite Contrary and London Bridge is Falling Down.
The three parts start by the rhyme being sung, followed by the animated
representation of the presumed historical inspiration.
1967 brought about the 77-minutes-long animated cartoon The Wacky World
of Mother Goose, directed by Jules Bass, featuring Humpty Dumpty, Jack Horner,
Mary Quite Contrary, King Cole, and many others. The story develops when
Mother Goose, voiced by Margaret Rutherford (1892-1972), goes to visit her
sick sister and leaves Mother Goose Land which is then invaded and terrorized
by the evil Count Walktwist, the Crooked Man, and his enchanted Crooked
Knights. Jack and Mary, with the help of the Lamb and Humpty Dumpty, set on
a quest to bring Mother Goose back in order to save the land. A somewhat similar
story is the plot of a teleplay directed by Jeff Stein, Mother Goose Rock n Rhyme
(1990), which takes place in Rhymeland, the land of nursery rhymes created by
Mother Goose whose presence in Rhymeland is necessary in order to keep its
inhabitants, the Rhymeys, i.e. nursery rhyme characters, alive. The action, again,
is triggered by Mother Gooses disappearance. Her son, Gordon, played by Dan
Gilroy, starts the search, together with Little Bo Beep, played by Shelley Duvall,
who was the first to appear on the scene, looking for Mother Goose, to help her
find her missing sheep. The search for Mother Goose leads them to the terrifying
real world, where she is the captive of a real world boy named Michael, who,
after discovering that, because of his misdeed, he would be the culprit for the
disappearance of nursery rhymes, reluctantly decides to release Mother Goose
back to the world of fiction. Once she is safely home, she unravels the terrible
truth to her son, after his life-long effort to remain normal in the insane
neighbourhood of Rhymeys, that he is a Rhymey as well, the oldest of them all,
created in an unknown and an unfinished rhyme:
Gordon Gooses pet got loose,
Early in the morning
Whats the use of having a
Rock stars acting as Mother Goose characters provide a whole new perspective
on classic rhymes. Among them, for example, Cyndi Lauper plays a lonely Mary,
who lost two of her husbands due to the fact that the Lamb, played by Woody
Harrelson, which eventually grew into a sheep, followed her literally everywhere.
Art Garfunkel plays Georgie Porgie and Little Richard Old King Cole; Paul
Simon is Simple Simon, while ZZ Top impersonate the silent, but helpful Three
Men in a Tub. The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe is played by the young and
attractive Debbie Harry, and her many children all have different fathers. This
innovative approach to the subject renders this video unsuitable for children
under the age of nine, according to the official recommendation, because of the
many insinuations incorporated in the story.
The introduction of computers into childrens lives opened another possibility
of utilizing Mother Gooses image as well as the popularity of her rhymes. Thus,
in 1988 Sierra On-Line, Inc. released a computer game designed by Roberta
Williams, Mixed-Up Mother Goose. This childrens software was updated
several times, and most recently in 1996, under the title Mixed-Up Mother Goose
Deluxe. This interactive, multimedia adventure introduces children at the age of
3 to 6 into the world of computers while simultaneously teaching them logic,
organization and memory skills. The plot is less dramatic than the previously
described, but similar, nevertheless: there is trouble in Mother Goose Land and
16
it is up to the child player to solve the problems, i.e. eighteen animated nursery
rhyme characters need to be reunited with their lost items in order for their rhymes
to exist (for example, Little Bo Peep and her lost sheep, or Mary and her lamb).
In return, the characters perform a song accompanied with animation and text,
so that the child can sing along. Helping Mother Goose complete all of the
eighteen mixed-up rhymes results in the arrival of the Gander who rewards the
child for saving Mother Goose Land.
Such continuous adaptations of the rhymes inadvertently contribute to their
popularity, as they keep the interest in the rhymes alive with every successive
and more modern generation of children. However, the old-fashioned book has
never really gone out of fashion, and it is still widely enjoyed in nurseries, just
as it used to be in the eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries.
3.2 Inspiration for Mother Goose
As well as serving as an inspiring element, Mother Goose drew inspiration
from various sources and used some most unexpected items for the purpose. For
example, drinking and love songs of the past which were never originally
intended for the nursery, found their way into nursery lore simply because, in
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, adults were far less squeamish about what
was fit for childrens ears than they are today.
17
Who comes here?
A grenadier.
What do you want?
A pot of beer.
Wheres your money?
I forgot.
Get you gone,
You drunken sot.
18
According to Iona and Peter Opie, Henry Carey incorporated this rhyme in his
ballad Namby Pamby, or a Panegyric on the New Versification, addressed to A.
F., Esq. (1725) and further developed it, along with some other lines, today known
as nursery rhymes, such as Jack-a-Dandy, Boys and girls come out to play,
London bridge is broken down, and See, saw, sacradown.
19
However, taking
into account the fact that the ballad was published many years before the nursery
rhymes, there is no way of claiming with absolute certainty that the ballad was
inspired by the rhymes. It may well be the opposite case: that the rhymes stemmed
from the ballad itself, dismembered, remembered, enriched and sung separately.
However, there are rhymes that are proved to be fragments of ballads
commemorating actual occurrences of at least local importance.
20
Three children sliding on the ice
Upon a summers day,
As it fell out, they all fell in
The rest they ran away.
Now had these children been at home,
Or sliding on dry ground,
Ten thousand pounds to one penny,
They had not all been drownd.
17
Ye parents who have children dear,
And eke ye that have none,
If you would keep them safe abroad,
Pray keep them safe at home.
21
This rhyme is similar to three stanzas of the broadside ballad entitled The
Lamentation of a Bad Market; or, the Drowning of three Children in the Thames
(1680). Stanza 12 of the ballad is remarkably similar to the first stanza of the
nursery rhyme:
Three children sliding thereabouts,
upon a place too thin,
That so at last it did fall out,
that they did all fall in.
while stanzas 18 and 19 closely resemble the rest of the rhyme, with slight changes
in the wording:
Ye Parents all that children have,
and ye that have none yet,
Preserve your children from the grave,
and teach them at home to sit.
For had these at a Sermon been,
Or else upon dry round,
Why then I would never have been seen,
If that they had been drownd.
22
According to Arthur Quiller-Couch (1863-1944), the editor of The Oxford
Book of Ballads (1910), we have to remember that, where almost everything
depends on oral tradition, it may easily happen - in fact happens not seldom -
that a really old ballad of the best period has reached us late and in a corrupted
form, its original gold overlaid with silver and bronze.
23
Such could be the case
of the following nursery rhyme, brought to the extreme:
Robin Hood, Robin Hood,
Is in the mickle
24
wood;
Little John, Little John,
He to the town is gone.
Robin Hood, Robin Hood,
Is telling his beads,
25
All in the green wood,
Among the green weeds.
Little John, Little John,
If he comes no more.
Robin Hood, Robin Hood,
He will fret full sore.
26
This rhyme could be the remnant of an unknown and an unrecorded ballad;
however, it would be quite plausible to opt for the explanation that it stems from
the ballad entitled The Gest of Robyn Hode (c.1500). It tells four stories; the
18
first is about Sir Richard at the Lea, the knight who was helped by Robin Hood
in time of great need, the second is about an archery competition where Robin
Hoods men were ambushed by the Sheriff of Nottingham, the third described
the Kings visit to the greenwood under the disguise of a monk, resulting in
Robin Hoods fifteen-month-long service on the Court, and the fourth describes
Robins death on the hands of the Prioress of Kirklees, after twenty-two years
of outlaw life in the woods. This may be the reason why some scholars think
that it is a compilation of several, now lost, ballads, while others believe that
later ballads took their plots from the tales in The Gest of Robyn Hode. Be it
as it may, it is the only one
27
that resembles, even if only remotely, the nursery
rhyme of Robin Hood. Just like the nursery rhyme, the ballad begins with the
introduction of Robin Hood and his merry men:
Lythe and listin, gentilmen,
That be of frebore blode;
I shall you tel of a gode yeman,
His name was Robyn Hode.
Robyn was a prude outlaw,
Whyles he walked on grounde;
So curteyse an outlawe as he was one
Was never non founde.
Robyn stode in Bernesdale,
And lenyd hym to a tre;
And bi hym stode Litell Johnn,
A gode yeman was he.
28
In the third fit
29
of the ballad, Little John does go to town, as in the nursery
rhyme, where he is taken into service by the Sheriff of Nottingham after showing
great skill at an archery contest.
Nowe is Litell John the sherifs man,
God lende vs well to spede!
But alwey thought Lytell John
To quyte hym wele his mede.
There are many occasions on which Robin Hood is described as being in the
green wood; however, as it is followed, in the second stanza of the nursery
rhyme, by the description of Robins anxiety, and worrying, it might refer to the
period of Little Johns absence, in fit four of the ballad, which ends with the
words of greeting upon little Johns return to the greenwood:
God the saue, my der mayster,
And Criste the saue and se!
And thanne sayde Robyn to Litell Johnn,
Welcome myght thou be.
Another possibility includes the sixth fit, after Little John was wounded in the
fight with the Sheriff of Nottingham, following the archery contest for the golden
arrow, when Robin Hood left his friend to recover from the wounds in the castle
of Sir Richard at the Lea:
19
The shyref had his leue i-take,
And went hym on his way,
And Robyn Hode to gren wode,
Vpon a certen day.
The third stanza of the nursery rhyme shows great affection of Robin Hood
towards Little John, while the strong bond and respect between the two men are
even better depicted in the conversation between them, in the fifth fit of the
ballad, immediately after Little John has received his wound:
Lytell Johan was hurte full sore,
With an arowe in his kne,
That he myght neyther go nor ryde;
It was full grete pyt.
Mayster, then sayd Lytell Johan,
If euer thou louedst me,
And for that ylk lord s loue
That dyed vpon a tre,
And for the medes of my seruyce,
That I haue serued the,
Lete neuer the proud sheryf
Alyue now fynd me.
But take out thy brown swerde,
And smyte all of my hede,
And gyue me wound s depe and wyde;
No lyfe on me be lefte.
I wolde not that, sayd Robyn,
Johan, that thou were slawe,
For all the golde in mery Englonde,
Though it lay now on a rawe.
Not all the ballads that found their way into the nursery lore are as extremely
reduced as the previous one may have been; some of them survive with
comparatively insignificant adaptations in their text, keeping the original length
and the core of the story. Such is the case with the ballad The Marriage of the
Frogge and the Mouse, thirteen stanzas long, of which the earliest existing text
is found in Thomas Ravenscrofts (1590-1633) Melismata (1611), among Country
Pastimes. Its second stanza:
The Frogge would a woing ride,
humble dum humble dum,
Sword and buckler by his side,
tweedle, tweedle twino.
is adapted into the beginning of the fourteen stanzas long nursery rhyme, with
additions of the lines relating to the world of children, such as line 3, for example,
and changes in the refrains in different versions of the rhyme:
20
A frog he would a-wooing go,
Heigho, says Rowley;
Whether his mother would let him or no:
With a rowley, powley, gammon and spinach.
Heigho, says Anthony Rowley.
30
The plot itself, though slightly changed, with earlier appearance of some
characters in the rhyme, like Mr. Rat, for example, and the dinner of the nursery
rhyme enriched with the merry singing of Mrs. Mouse, essentially remains the
same over time. The original refrain in Melismata, humble dum humble dum
and tweedle, tweedle twino, according to the Opies, may belong to the group
of spinning refrains, humble-dum representing the humming of the wheel,
and tweedle twino the twiddling and twining of the thread [and therefore] would
be a favourite with spinsters and the knitters in the sun.
31
This further qualifies
the ballad for entering the lore of children, as women were those who spent most
of their time with them, and they were the ones to choose what would be sung
or recited to their young ones. From its first appearance in 1580, as A moste
Strange weddinge of the ffrogge and the mowse, in only two hundred years, it
came a long way from the official status of a ballad to being spoken about as a
nursery song in 1781 by the poet Thomas Wharton (1728-1790).
Ballads were not the only sources for extracting nursery rhymes - satires were,
as well. The rhyme of Little Jack Horner,
32
according to Halliwell, is the remnant
of a metrical chap-book history [...] entitled The Pleasant History of Jack Horner,
containing his witty tricks, and pleasant pranks, which he played from his youth
to his riper years: right pleasant and delightful for winter and summers recreation,
[...] a satire on the Puritanical aversion to Christmas pies and suchlike abominations:
Jack Horner was a pretty lad,
Near London he did dwell,
His fathers heart he made full glad,
His mother lovd him well.
While little Jack was sweet and young,
If he by chance should cry,
His mother pretty sonnets sung,
With a lul-la-ba-by,
With such a dainty curious tone,
As Jack sat on her knee,
He sung as well as she.
So that, eer he could go alone,
A pretty boy of curious wit,
All people spoke his praise,
And in the corner would he sit
In Christmas holy days.
When friends they did together meet,
To pass away the time-
Why, little Jack, lie sure would eat
His Christmas pie in rhyme.
And said, Jack Horner, in the corner,
Eats good Christmas pie,
And with his thumbs pulls out the plumbs,
And said, Good boy am I!
33
21
Yet another source for nursery rhymes were the Mumming plays, performed by
Mummers. According to John Anthony Bowden Cuddon (1928-1996), the author
of A Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory, (1999) a mumming play
is a primitive form of folk drama, associated with funeral rites and seasonal fertility
rites that was, in the Opies opinion, so frequently performed in the past that there
was no need for the texts to be written down, which is how they explain the relative
lack of written records, as proof of their hypothesis. Their conclusion is that it is
inevitable that an entertainment so embedded in the life of the country should have
left traces of its existence in the nursery.
34
Of the rhymes which they list as possible
descendants of mummers plays, it is most reasonable to believe that the rhymes
concerning a persons death can claim the relationship, such as the following rhyme,
recorded as Rhyme IV in Halliwells The Nursery Rhymes of England (1844):
My father he died, I cannot tell how,
But he left me six horses to drive out my plough:
With a wimmy lo! wommy lo! Jack Straw blazey boys!
Wimmy lo! Wommy lo! Wob, wob, wob!
The content of the rhymes stemming from mummers plays is probably derived
mostly from the introductory lines to the performance [...] and the closing
lines,
35
as these are the ones that are most easily remembered, because of the
way human brain functions. Nursery rhyme CCXCVI, for which Halliwell claims
that it is sung at the Christmas mummings in Somersetshire, although written
in a corrupt language, could create a connection between mumming plays and
other nursery rhymes with similar beginnings:
Here comes I,
Liddle man Jan,
Wi my zword
In my han!
If you dont all do,
As you be told by I,
Ill zend you all to York,
Vor to make apple-pie.
36
It would, therefore, be relatively safe to conclude that most of the rhymes
which serve as a brief introduction of a certain character, and finish abruptly,
without further development of the action, must have been, at one time, parts of
the plays. Such would be the case of the still popular Here am I, little jumping
Joan and Here comes a poor woman from baby-land.
37
Remaining in the realm of plays, puppet shows in this instance, we find another
example of a nursery rhyme that has roots in popular performance:
Punch and Judy
Fought for a pie;
Punch gave Judy
A knock of the eye.
Says Punch to Judy
Will you have any more?
Says Judy to Punch,
My eyes too sore.
38
22
Punch and Judy was an extremely popular puppet show; so much so, that
Sir Richard Steele (1672-1729) in a letter in the Spectator (No. 14), attributed
to him, makes a complaint that the street performances of this puppet show divert
people from attending the church. John Timbs (1801-1875), an English antiquary,
in his book Things Not Generally Known, Familiarly Explained (1859), tries to
explain the origin of these two popular characters, providing several possible
options, the first being that the names represent a corrupted form of Pontus cum
Judis, one of the old mysteries, the subject of which was, Pontius Pilate with
the Jews. Another option supports the view that the show stems from a mystery-
play, but that Punch is a nickname from the Italian name Poncinello or
Punchinello,
39
a corruption of Pontiello, or Pontianello and Judy from Giudei
(the Jews), or Giuda (Judas). Timbs gives in support Lewis Theobalds opinion
(1688-1744), who claims that Devil was a character present in almost all plays
before the period of the Reformation: In the moralities, the Devil usually carried
away the Iniquity, or Evil, at the conclusion of the Drama; and, in compliance
with the old custom, Punch, the genuine descendant of the Iniquity, is constantly
taken from the stage by the Devil at the end of the puppet-show.
40
According to Timbs, this puppet show was already popular in 1711; therefore,
there can be no doubt as to whether or not it was the predecessor of the rhyme.
The essence of story line is kept, in the short incident of the rhyme, which describes
a fight between the husband and wife. An excerpt from Scene III, from the script
of the show of The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Punch and Judy
(1832) depicts a much rougher and a more violent version of the fight, resulting
in the wifes death:
Judy: No, no, no more! (Lifting up her head.)
Punch: (Knocking down her head) I thought I should soon make you quiet.
Judy: (Again raising her head.) No.
Punch: (Again knocking it down, and following up his blows until she is lifeless.
[...] Tosses the body down with the end of his stick.) He, he, he! (Laughing.)
To lose a wife is to get a fortune. (Sings.)
41
Another source of inspiration for nursery rhymes were novels whose wider
circulation in the eighteenth century brought about greater popularity of the
subjects they dwelled upon, as well as of the main characters in them. Daniel
Defoes (1661-1731) Robinson Crusoe was first published in 1719 under the full
title The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York,
Mariner: Who lived Eight and Twenty years, all alone in an un-inhabited Island
on the Coast of America, near the Mouth of the Great River of Oroonoque, Having
been cast on Shore by Shipwreck, where-in all the Men perished but himself.
With an Account how he was at last as strangely deliverd by the Pirates, Written
by Himself; and it immediately became immensely popular. This led to
performances for even wider audience, and to the creation of a pantomime called
Robinson Crusoe or Harlequin Friday, first produced at the Theatre Royal in
Drury Lane in 1781. This, in turn, according to Iona and Peter Opie, inspired
John Cussans, a singer of the late eighteenth century to write his own, ten stanzas
long version of a song, with the refrain:
O Robinson Crusoe,
O poor Robinson Crusoe!
Tink a tink tang,
Tink a tink tang,
O poor Robinson Crusoe!
42
23
It is not difficult to notice the connection between this refrain and the text of
the nursery rhyme which most probably stems from the song:
Poor old Robinson Crusoe!
Poor old Robinson Crusoe!
They made him a coat,
Of an old nanny goat,
I wonder how they could do so!
With a ring a ting tang,
And a ring a ting tang,
Poor old Robinson Crusoe!
43
In addition, the novel is abundant in references to goats, and there is even a
straightforward description of Robinson wearing a coat as described in the rhyme:
[...] my Figure indeed was very fierce; I had my formidable Goat-Skin Coat on,
with the great Cap I have mentiond, a naked Sword by my Side, two Pistols in
my Belt, and a Gun upon each Shoulder.
44
In this way, fictional characters found a way of being doubly preserved in
peoples memory, both through the original works and through the nursery rhymes.
3.3 History through the eyes of Mother Goose
Possible political and character references in nursery rhymes have sparked
discussions even in the nineteenth century only to ignite a fire that escalated in
the twentieth century, with Iona and Peter Opie, who almost angrily criticize
such attempts. The Opies claim that the bulk of these speculations are worthless.
45
They even go to such lengths as to say that John Bellenden Ker (1765-1842),
the author of An Essay on the Archaeology of our Popular Phrases, and Nursery
Rhymes (1837), has given delight to students of mania ever since he wrote his
book. Ker, however, should be given credit for turning the attention of scholars
to the nursery rhymes, thus-far considered relatively unimportant in literary
terms, as well as for at least some reasonable propositions in his Introductory
observations to the first edition of Nursery Rhymes:
As the now unmeaning metrical farragos known by that title; and which, in a
greater or less proportion, survive our nursery-days in the memories of us all.
[...] And I am persuaded they appeared, originally, during the existence of a form
of our speech, in which the sound of the form they now present to us carried the
sense they were intended to express.
46
The Opies, however, did have a point in emphasizing the fact that Ker read
too much into many an innocent rhyme, concentrating almost exclusively on the
clerical. In his opinion, the rhymes that are known today are, in reality,
transformations of the rhymes written in an early form of Dutch (the invention
of Mr. Ker).
47
For every analysed rhyme, he gives its present day original,
followed by his version of the root form with the translation into modern English,
and finishes the analysis with the explanations of particular words that he uses
to prove his point:
Girls and boys come out to play,
The moon does shine as bright as day,
Leave your supper and leave your sleep,
And come with your playfellows into the street; [...]
24
Keerles end boers, kom houde toe ple;
De moon dus syn bereght als de
Liew uwer sop heer, end liev uwer sluijpe!
Kom wijse uwer ple val u s; hin toe dij strijdt! [...]
Bondsmen and boors (rustics) come quick to the tithe-audit and pay your
servile rates! It is thus the demon (the rector or clerical lord) domineers as of
right over his people! Do then love your lord with the shaved crown (the priest)!
Love your lurking assassin (the priest)! Come on, and look as if your audits were
a pleasure to you! [...]
Bereght, orders about, sounds bright. Ple val u s, duty which is pleasant to
you, sounds play-fellows. [...]
48
James Orchard Halliwell-Phillipps (1820-1889) is treated with more respect
by the Opies, whose opinion is that he struck a saner note than Ker, whereas
William and Ceil Baring-Gould award him the title of Young Father Goose,
in reverence of his achievements in the domain of nursery rhymes, and call him
one of the worlds most respected Spenserian and Shakespearian scholars. Be
it as it may, his collection of nursery rhymes was the greatest at the time, and,
more importantly, he put in an additional effort to try to explain the origin of the
rhymes collected. It could be the case that he published some comments with
misguided judgements, but The Nursery Rhymes of England and its sequels are
full of reasonable conclusions as well.
One such conclusion is that political nursery-rhymes, or rather political rhymes
of a jingling character, [...] losing their original application, are preserved only
in the nursery.
49
This standpoint was readily accepted by Katherine Elwes
Thomas, who implemented the idea and further developed it, which brought
about harsh comments on the part of Iona and Peter Opie who describe her book
as a curious mixture of fact and fable, and a cheerful determination to prove
that the nursery characters were real persons regardless of what the sources quoted
say. Her work, at times, does resemble that of Kers, in that, for instance, for
the ancient riddle rhyme:
Two legs sat upon three legs.
Up jumps two legs, picks up three legs,
And throws it after four legs.
she gave the following, rather nonsensical explanation, and quite in the manner
of John Bellenden Ker, whom she quotes with reverence elsewhere in the book:
Two legs, in the person of an irate old Scotch woman, Jenny Giles, rose in
her Presbyterian wrath. Seizing three legs, the little stool upon which she always
sat at home and in the church, she hurled it after four legs. The three legs,
so unceremoniously thrown at the head of the dean, was in reality hurled after
the four legs of the Four Tables of the separate committees of the nobles, gentry,
burghers, and clergymen quickly formed.
50
A lot of the rhymes were treated like this, explained in such a way so as to
forcefully fit into the course of history as it suited her purpose. To make things
worse, she sometimes does not quote her source, and it is only by parallel reading
with Halliwells work, for example, that one can discover the overlaps, repetitions,
and even downright plagiarism. She did, however, give some relatively convincing
reasons of her own for some of her beliefs. For example, her explanation of the
rhyme Little Jack Horner
51
is based on the legendary account she obtained
from the possible descendants of a Jack Horner, upon her visit to their home,
Horner Hall. The story goes that Jack Horner was son of a gentleman of influence
25
in the neighbourhood of Glastonbury, who was given the task of taking to the
king the title deeds [...] of certain churchly estates [...] done up in the form of
a pie. On his way to London, he stole for himself the title deed of the Mells
Park estate, held to this day by his descendants, which she connected with the
plum of the rhyme pulled out of the pie.
52
Even the Opies admit that some of the rhymes may have referred to real
people in the past, at the time they were created. According to them, Elsie Marley
of the rhyme:
Elsie Marley has grown so fine,
She wont get up to serve the swine;
But lies in bed till eight or nine,
And surely she does take her time.
is one of the best documented of the nursery rhyme characters.
53
Born about
1715, Alice Marley (ne Harrison) was often called by her friends either Ailcie
or Elsie, and she entered the folk lore via a song, first printed on a slip sheet
about 1756, entitled Alice Marley, A New Song, and it is later found in Joseph
Ritsons Bishoprick Garland (1784) and John Bells Rhymes of Northern Bards:
Being a Curious Collection of Old and New Songs and Poems, Peculiar to the
Counties of Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, and Durham (1812) under
the title Elsie Marley, An Alewife at Picktree, near Chester-le-Street. Her death
was recorded in John Sykess Local Records; Or, Historical Register of
Remarkable Events (1833), among the entries for the year 1768:
August 5. - The well known Alice Marley, who kept a public house at Picktree,
near Chester-le-street, being in a fever, got out of her house, and went into a field
where there was an old coal pit full of water, which she fell into and was drowned.
54
The text of the rhyme about Elsie Marlie is almost identical to the rhyme about
Nancy Dawson, a famous dancer of the time and a contemporary of Alice Marley:
Nancy Dawson was so fine,
She wouldnt get up to serve the swine,
She lies in bed till eight or nine,
So its oh! poor Nancy Dawson.
55
A record both of Nancys death in 1767, and of the song about her which the
nursery rhyme is a relic of, can be found in John Thomas Smiths A Book for a
Rainy Day: Or, Recollections of the Events of the Years 1766-1833 (1861):
Nancy Dawson, the famous hornpipe-dancer, died this year, May 27th, at
Hampstead; she was buried behind the Foundling Hospital, in the ground belonging
to St. George the Martyr, where there is a tombstone to her memory, simply stating,
Here lies Nancy Dawson. Every verse of a song in praise of her, declares the
poet to be dying for Nancy Dawson; and its tune, which many of my readers must
recollect, is, in my opinion, as lively as that of Sir Roger de Coverly.
Two other nursery characters whose existence can be verified, even if only on
the basis of a legend, are Bessy Bell and Mary Gray, with their names in the opening
line of the first stanza of the nursery rhyme that is almost an exact translation into
modern English of the first stanza of the ballad which it stems from:
56
Bessy Bell and Mary Gray,
They were two bonny lasses;
They built their house upon the lea,
And covered it with rashes.
57
26
According to the Reverend Mr John Dowe, Minister of the Methuen Parish,
Bessy Bell and Mary Gray, celebrated in one of our most popular songs are said
to have been burried in this parish, about half a mile west of the present house
of Lednock. He claims that the two girls were intimate friends and neighbours,
both born into families of high rank - Bessy being the Laird of Kinvaids daughter,
and Mary the Laird of Lednocks. They had the misfortune to live in a century
that was described by William Edmondstoune Aytoun (1813-1865), the editor
of The Ballads of Scotland (1859), as fundamentally disturbed by the plague
[...] which, down to the year 1665, was the terror of the country. In those days,
the custom was for the infected to isolate themselves geographically, and live
the rest of their days confined to quarantine. And so it was the case that, when
Bessy Bell and Mary Gray were together, at Lednock, the plague broke out,
anno 1645; to avoid which, they retired to a romantic spot, called Burn Breas,
on the estate of Lednock, where they lived for some time.
58
This is explicitly
mentioned in Francis James Childs version of the ballad: They bigget a bower
on yon burn-brae, /And theekit it oer wi rashes.
Most accounts support the following development of the story: during their
isolation period, the two girls were sometimes visited by a young man, who
brought love to them both, as well as the plague, which resulted in their death.
For fear of spreading the disease, the victims whose lives the plague had claimed
were not buried in the usual way, nor in the usual place, i.e., the graveyard of
the town the deceased had lived in, but were either left in the open, to beek
forenent the sun,
59
until their bodies disintegrated and were safe to touch and
dispose of, or were dealt with in some other uncommon way. The surviving lines
of the ballad - They thought to lie in Methven kirkyard,/ Amang their noble
kin
60
- support the claim of Reverend Mr John Dowe that the two girls belonged
to his parish in life.
Other accounts, however, claim different connections; the town of Omagh,
County Tyrone in Northern Ireland, offers two of its hills as evidence of its story,
one named Bessy Bell (420m) and the other named Mary Gray (240m), which
form a gateway to the south of the Sperrins. The legend is recounted, from the
recollection of the elders of the district, as shortly preceding their early youth,
in The Dublin University Magazine, A Literary and Political Journal (Jan.-June
1833) as follows: Bessy was highly descended, whereas Mary was maiden of
low degree, the daughter of a farmer who, having lost his wife, sent his daughter
to a boarding school, at the age of eight, in order to be brought up and educated
like her peers of much higher rank. This part of the account is inconsistent with,
or rather the opposite of the final lines of the nursery rhyme: Bessy always had
to wait,/ While Mary lived in plenty.
61
Although the two girls were opposite in
nature: Mary thoughtful, calm, and imaginative, Bessy playful, capricious,
and inconsiderate, they developed a strong bond, a friendship they thought would
be lifelong. However, Mr. Bell was not in favour of his daughter socializing with
those beneath her rank, and strictly forbid it, which resulted in great and lasting
sorrow on both sides. After a long while, Marys solitude was disrupted by the
courting of Frederick Montgomery, who was in a visit to a newly married friend.
The courting was put an end to, but The Dublin University Magazine gives no
precise explanation of the cause. Four months later, after a party organized by
Montgomerys friend to cheer up the sad young man, Bessy Bells relationship
with Montgomery commenced. Just before Montgomery was to propose, Mary
found out about them and sent him a note, which, after a series of events, led to
breaking of yet another relationship, again, unaccounted for.
The story continues one year after its beginning, when Frederick Montgomery
returned to Omagh, only to find that Mary had died. Under the pressure of guilt,
27
he committed suicide, all of which caused Bessys insanity. No plague is mentioned
in this version, though, on various occasions, the author does give descriptions
which might be interpreted as that of illness: deadly sickness came over Frederick
and his brow wore the ravages of illness, while Marys eyes had the glaze of
disease, and the wan pallor of death.
62
Furthermore, since the girls are separated
in the legend, whereas they even live together in the rhyme, the connection
between the two storylines is blurred, thus making the first account much more
plausible as the possible historical background of the rhyme.
Stepping much further back on the timeline, we find the history of a nursery
rhyme character again interwoven with legend. The identity of Old King Cole,
the merry old soul,
63
has several possible claimants in the history of ancient
Britain, all named Coel, which is the Welsh version of the name Cole. However,
in the course of time, the facts concerning their existence became inextricably
connected with various legends, which makes it extremely difficult, if not
impossible, to establish the definite truth. Nevertheless, it is safe to say that one
possible candidate for the nursery rhyme must be Coel Hen - Coel the Ancient,
or Old King Cole as he would later be known, [whose legacy was] east of the
Pennines, and much of present-day Northumberland, Durham and Yorkshire.
64
Reverend Robert Williams (1810-1881), a Celtic scholar and antiquary, in his
Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Welshmen (1852), states that Coel lived to
the age of 289, which will account for his celebrity in song as Old king Cole,
[adding that] he flourished in the time of Agricola, which sets the period of the
prime of his life somewhere between the years 40 AD and 93 AD, which is the
lifespan of Gnaeus Julius Agricola. However, as the stated length of his life seems
to belong to the realm of legend, it simultaneously discredits the main argument
for identifying him with the King Cole of the rhyme; therefore, it is necessary
to further explore the history of Wales in search of other possible candidates.
Another Coel, Coel Godebog or Goedhebawg, who must have lived in the
third century, prior to 274,
65
was king of Britain and Earl of Colchester, a right
worthy king, to whom King Henry the Seventh is Son, [...] in the thirty-first
degree.
66
According to other sources, more precise, though not necessarily more
accurate, he was the prince of Cornwall, son of Tegvan ap Dehevraint, [...] and
he took upon himself the kingdom of Britain in 272, holding it for twenty-eight
years.
67
Williams, however, claims that his reign lasted for ten years. Coels
daughter, Helena, concerning whom we have less authentic information than
of any other female who has arrived at the imperial dignity,
68
is believed to
have married Constantius, a Roman senator, who afterwards gave birth to
Constantine the Great. Coel Godebog, who died in York in the year 300 AD, is,
therefore, a comparatively better documented historical personality, which gives
him the credibility to take over as the potential Cole of the rhyme.
The least probable candidate for the role can be found in Sketch of the early
history of the Cymry, or ancient Britons, from the year 700, before Christ, to A.
D. 500 (1803), written by Reverend Peter Roberts (1760-1819), a Biblical scholar
and antiquary. According to him, this Coel is celebrated in the Welsh Triads as
son of Cyllin, and grandson of Caradoc ap Bran, who first made a mill turned
by a wheel. Attitudes towards medieval Welsh genealogies and triads greatly
differ, though; a thoroughly unfavourable view comes from John Allen Giles
(1808-1884), the author of History of the Ancient Britons, From the Earliest Period
to the Invasion of the Saxons (1847). He says that of the Welsh versions of this
part of British history, found in their Triads and genealogies, it is useless to say
much: they partake of the same mendacious love of fiction which has obscured
rather than illustrated all the early annals of that people. Another, a bit milder
and more respectful critic of the Welsh antiquaries, the historian Tobias George
28
Smollett (1721-1771) says that they state their inferences with a positive boldness
which provokes a disposition to doubt, while it withholds the means of refutation.
69
A more balanced view can be found in modern literature; on the one hand, it
supports the credibility of genealogies, based on the fact that because the descent
of kings was essential to the cohesion and stability of dark age society (in both
Celtic and Saxon territories), it had to be remembered accurately, [so] genealogies
were recited at public occasions as a way of ensuring that the bards had remembered
them correctly. On the other hand, we know that there were changes of regime
by usurpation, and on public occasions such as those just mentioned the usurpers
would have been exposed if the genealogies were accurate.
70
Therefore, it is not unlikely that some of the genealogies were in fact invented,
to suit the needs of those in power, and ensure them even greater power by
securing their position through artificially fabricated right of birth.
Another king whose name is explicitly mentioned in the first stanza of one of
the rhymes is King Arthur:
When good king Arthur ruled this land,
He was a goodly king;
He stole three pecks of barley-meal,
To make a bag-pudding.
71
This leaves no doubt whatsoever as to whether or not the character of the
rhyme refers to him; however, it leaves open the question of credibility of King
Arthurs existence, i.e. whether or not he was a historical personality or simply
a legendary one. Genealogies again are the cause of discord between those who
are in favour of one view or the other, because nothing is known for certain about
his lineage. Joseph Ritson, for example, quotes Henry of Huntingdon (c.1080-
1160) in The Life of King Arthur: From Ancient Historians and Authentic
Documents (1825), who claims that the Arthur of Welch history is a non-
existence. In his book King Arthur: Truth behind the Legend (2000), Rodney
Castleden strives to validate Arthurs existence, and tries to prove his claims
giving as ample evidence as humanly possible on the basis of the little purely
historical data available on the subject. He states that the lack of a detailed
pedigree for King Arthur does not automatically discredit him as a historical
figure, since pedigrees are missing for several other key historic figures from
this period and the pedigrees that do exist are not by any means entirely reliable,
although it does open the possibility that Arthur was either of humble origin, or
a usurper to the throne. However, on the basis of various documents, Castleden
claims that, on the battlefield at any rate, Arthur held a higher rank than the
other kings, [that] he was not only a king, but a leader of kings, - an overking.
He estimates that the period from 450 to 550 AD must have been the time when
Arthur lived, based on the inference from various historical data and the date of
Arthurs last battle which dates back to either the year 537 or 539 AD.
In the nursery rhyme, King Arthur is described as a goodly king, which is,
in a way, a summary of some academic opinions, as well. Robert Williams praises
his virtue of leadership, stating that his reputation is chiefly grounded upon his
prowess and valour as a supreme Leader.
72
Rodney Castleden claims that he
favoured orderliness in government, and was therefore, we may tentatively
assume, orderly in behaviour himself [...] and respected truth and justice [because
of what] Arthur sounds like the very best kind of Roman patrician. These
characteristics were probably what instigated the creation of the very first, little
known Welsh tales of Culhwch and Olwen and the Dream of Rhonabwy [...]
dating from before the 11th century, [and depicting] an unfamiliar Dark Age
29
society that gives us some idea of what the real Arthur was probably like,
73
if
he existed at all. The seemingly contrary description of Arthurs character in the
second part of the stanza need not necessarily be viewed as such; it may be seen
as a testimony to Arthurs close connection with ordinary folk, and being regarded
as one of them.
As opposed to the rhyme previously disscussed, Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
stimulated various speculations over the identity of Mary in the rhyme. The
first is Katherine Elwes Thomass suggestion that the person in question is Mary
Stuart, Queen of Scots (1542-1587), who, being of French descent through
maternal line, was sent to France at the age of five, together with her royal Maids
of Honor, Mary Beaton, Mary Seaton, Mary Fleming, and Mary Livingston.
However, other versions of the rhyme dispute the very pillar of this theory, as
there is no mention of maids in them:
Mistress Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With cockle-shells, and silver bells,
And muscles all in a row.
74
Apart from muscles in the last line, according to Halliwell, columbines, as
well as cowslips can be found instead of pretty maids in different versions of
the rhyme. Other interpretations suggest that the rhyme refers to a different Mary
- Mary Tudor, or Mary I (1516-1558), called Bloody Mary, the first Queen
Regent of England, who ruled from 1553 to 1558. This theory is, again, based on
the maids of the last line, which are supposed to be a metaphor for the torturing
device, popularly called Iron Maiden - the figure of a female, whose iron body
contained metal thorns, which inflicted terrible injuries to the body of the victim
closed inside. The characterization of Mary as quite contrary serves as one more
argument in support of this view, as the protestants burned in the days of Queen
Mary were burned, as legal and civil documents still accessible demonstrate,
simply for disclaiming transubstantiation, the supremacy of the pope, and the
assumed right of the Romish priesthood to debar the laity from reading the sacred
Scriptures.
75
Unfortunately, it cannot be said for either of these two theories that
they stand on firm ground, as there is nothing in the rhymes that implies with
certainty that Mary is a queen for a start, let alone a specific one.
Another rhyme with speculative origin, although possibly a more logical one,
is a riddle with the solution - a plum-pudding:
Flour of England, fruit of Spain,
Met together in a shower of rain;
Put in a bag tied round with a string,
If youll tell me this riddle, Ill give you a ring.
76
According to Katherine Elwes Thomas, this time supported even by the Opies
who quote her view in The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, under the guise
of a recipe for a Christmas pudding is epitomized the courtship and marriage of
[...] Philip II, King of Naples and Sicily, and presently King of Spain, and Mary
I, Queen of England, the marriage which many people of the time were opposed
to and who may have expressed the dissatisfaction through a sarcastic rhyme.
Agnes Strickland (1806-1874), in her book Lives of the Queens of England: From
the Norman Conquest (1852), describes the first meeting of the Queen and her
fiance, in the year 1554, which corresponds to the second line of the rhyme: In
the midst of a cruel wind and down-pouring rain, on the Monday morning, the
30
royal bridegroom and his suite mounted their steeds, and set out in grand state and
solemn cavalcade to Winchester, where the queen and her court waited for them.
Marys half-sister and successor, Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603), who ruled
England from 1559 to 1603, is openly described as a much better loved sovereign,
possibly because her reign came immediately after her cruel sisters. The couplet
The rose is redd - the leves - are greene,/God save - Elizabeth - our noble -
Quene, [which] appears round the rim of a plate dated 1600 in the London
Museum,
77
was most probably rather popular at the time, and almost certainly
served as the inspiration for the nursery rhyme:
The rose is red, the grass is green,
Serve Queen Bess our noble queen;
Kitty the spinner
Will sit down to dinner,
And eat the leg of a frog;
All good people
Look over the steeple,
And see the cat play with the dog.
78
The phrase Kitty the spinner might be a reference to the fact that the Queen,
called the Virgin Queen, was a spinster who never married or had children. In
addition, according to Katherine Elwes Thomas, Elizabeth I was familiarly
dubbed the Cat, and fairly earned this title from the manner in which she played
with her cabinet as if the ministers had been so many mice. However, this claim
of Thomass is rather debatable, as she further analyses almost every nursery
rhyme that mentions cats as if referring to Queen Elizabeth I without a doubt.
Having produced no offspring, the Virgin Queen was succeeded by King
James VI of Scotland (1566-1625), the son of Elizabeths cousin Mary, Queen
of Scotland, who thus became King James I of England. He was the first king
of the United Kingdom and he ruled from 1603 to 1625. His accession to the
throne resulted in the amalgamation of the English and Scottish Royal Coat of
Arms which were separate until then. Still nowadays, the Royal Coat of Arms
of Queen Elizabeth II (1926- ) represents different parts of the United Kingdom:
the three lions of England are in the first and fourth quarters, the lion of Scotland
is in the second quarter and the harp of Ireland in the third, while the English
lion and Scottish unicorn support the shield. Such an important event as the
Union of the Crown in 1603 must have stimulated people to produce what is
today known as nursery rhyme:
The lion and the unicorn
Were fighting for the crown;
The lion beat the unicorn
All round about the town.
79
Another event that instigated the appearance of a nursery rhyme during the
reign of King James I was the Gunpowder plot, the conspiracy of the Catholics
to blow up the parliament of James I on 5 November 1605, which was discovered
through an anonymous letter. The whole event was immediately sung about, and
a ballad was published, entitled Gunpowder-Plot, or, A Brief Account of that
bloudy and subtle Design laid against the King, his lords and Commons in
Parliament, and of a Happy Deliverance by Divine Power (1605). It is highly
likely that the sixteenth stanza of the ballad:
31
The Lord in Mercy did his Wisedom send
Unto the King, his People to Defend,
Which did reveal the hidden Powder-Plot,
A gracious Mercy neer to be forgot.
80
inspired ordinary people to create the nursery rhyme, either by inventing lines
on the same topic, or by simple repetition with inevitable changes, simplification,
and enrichment over the course of time:
Please to remember
The fifth of November,
Gunpowder treason and plot;
I know no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
81
Whether because the rhyme was so frequently sung, and accompanied people
from the early childhood, or because of some other reason, but the memory has
stayed alive in the minds of people, and the event is still commemorated on 5
November with fireworks and the burning of the guy, an effigy, which was
named after Guy Fawkes, one of the conspirators.
The son of James I, King Charles I (1600-1649), who ruled Great Britain and
Ireland from 1625, was constantly at war with his Parliament, sometimes even
literally, as in year 1642, which resulted in his capitulation. He was beheaded in
1649, and nursery lore was enriched by yet another rhyme:
King Charles the First walked and talked
Half an hour after his head was cut off.
82
Another rhyme, most probably a satirical one, taking into account the Kings
unpopularity, is much milder in tone, and more suitable for childrens ears:
As I was going by Charing Cross,
I saw a black man upon a black horse;
They told me it was King Charles the First;
Oh dear! my heart was ready to burst!
83
According to the Opies, it is possible that the rhyme refers to the statue of
King Charles I, initially erected in King Street, and, in 1675, repositioned to
Charing Cross, their argument being that the word black, apart from the common
reference to the colour of hair, may in this instance be describing the blackness
of tarnished brass.
84
One of the soldiers who started his career fighting for Charles I, but changed
sides and commanded the Parliamentary forces, was George Monk (1608-1670).
During the Commonwealth (1649-1660), he became commander-in-chief in
Scotland, but in 1660, two years after Oliver Cromwell had died, turned his
loyalty one more time, and used his military forces to help the Restoration of
Charles II, thus earning the right to become a duke in the same year. This whole
series of events made him interesting and important enough for people to remember
him via a nursery rhyme:
32
Little General Monk
Sat upon a trunk,
Eating a crust of bread;
There fell a hot coal
And burnt in his clothes a hole,
Now General Monk is dead.
85
The most prominent figure during the Commonwealth was most certainly
Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658), English general and the leader of the Parliamentary
forces in the English Civil War, who, after the execution of Charles I, changed
the status of Britain to a republic (the Commonwealth) in 1649 and named himself
the Lord Protector, which is the title he ruled under from 1653. As a man from
the people who rose to the highest position in his country, by his ability alone,
he deserved the right to be sung about in a rhyme, mentioned along with the
royalty, by the nickname given to him by the Royalists:
Purple, yellow, red, and green,
The king cannot reach it nor the queen;
Nor can old Noll, whose powers so great:
Tell me this riddle while I count eight.
86
According to Halliwell, the allusion to Oliver Cromwell satisfactorily fixes
the date of the riddle to belong to the seventeenth century, whereas the Opies,
dissatisfied with this vagueness, even try to determine the exact year, if not the
month in which this riddle was created:
The king and queen are here mentioned, without qualification, in the present
tense, so it is unlikely that Charles had yet been executed (Jan. 1649). On the
other hand Cromwell, to a Royalist, would scarcely have been considered a
figure of power - comparable, that is to say, with the king - until he began to
represent the Army (June 1647).
87
After the Puritan rule of Oliver Cromwell and the numerous bans concerning
all activities performed for entertainment, such as celebrations, gambling, drinking,
and even theatres, the restored king, Charles II (1630-1685), who ruled from
1660 to 1685, quickly re-established as acceptable social values both royal luxury
and dissolute behaviour, which may have inspired the overthrown Puritans to
invent a nursery rhyme mocking King Charles II:
Charley loves good cake and ale,
Charley loves good candy,
Charley loves to kiss the girls,
When they are clean and handy.
88
The longer version of the rhyme, expressing negative judgment with the couplet
Ill have none of your nasty beef,/ Nor Ill have none of your barley;
89
speaks
in favour of this statement, but it does not confirm this view as completely true,
as there are no specific references in the rhyme to claim so. The third and fourth
line may refer to the fact that Charles II was a rather promiscuous man, having
had as many as six illegitimate sons, the fact which is, without room for any
doubt, referred to in the following rhyme:
33
See-saw, sack-a-day;
Monmouth is a pretie boy,
Richmond is another,
Grafton is my onely joy,
And why should I these three destroy
To please a pious brother!
90
Of the six sons of Charles II, the dukes of Monmouth (by Lucy Walters), St
Albans (by Nell Gwynn), Richmond (by Louise de Querouaille), and Cleveland,
Grafton, and Northumberland (by Barbara Villiers), only three are mentioned in
the nursery rhyme, as well as his successor, James II (1633-1701), the pious
brother who gained the right to the throne in absence of legitimate heirs, although
James Scott Monmouth (1649-1685) did raise a rebellion to claim the crown,
which was crushed, resulting in his execution.
King James II, who ruled from 1685 to 1688, appears in one more rhyme, a
fragment of an old song published in Jacobite minstrelsy (1828), this time as
the king, giving the hand of his daughter, future Queen Mary II (1650-1702),
to the young Prince of Orange, soon to be King William III (1662-1694):
What is the rhyme for porringer?
The king he had a daughter fair,
And gave the Prince of Orange her.
91
James II, being a Catholic king, was overthrown after a three-year reign in the
Glorious Revolution by the will of the Parliament and the armed forces of his
Protestant son-in-law and his elder daughter, who became the first joint sovereigns
of the kingdoms, while the king was exiled to France. This event is described
in the song:
Ken ye how he requited him?
The lad has into England come,
And taen the crown in spite o him.
92
It is also alluded to in the third line of yet another nursery rhyme which openly
mentions Mary II and William II, as well as Marys younger sister Ann (1665-
1714) and her husband Prince George of Denmark (1653-1708):
William and Mary, George and Anne,
Four such children had never a man:
They put their father to flight and shame,
And calld their brother a shocking bad name.
93
The brother in the fourth line represents the Old Pretender, Mary and Anns
half-brother James Francis Edward Stuart (1688-1766), son of James II and his
second wife Mary of Modena, and a claimant to the English and Scottish thrones.
After a campaign to discredit the legitimacy of his birth, a decision was made to
disinherit James IIs infant son, who, being of Catholic upbringing, like his father,
did not become a king, even after the death of Queen Anne. Instead, the throne
was taken over by the Protestant Hanoverian dynasty, as neither Mary nor Anne
produced direct heirs.
The only rhyme
94
that might be connected with the House of Hanover is
the rhyme containing the nickname for George, the name of four monarchs
of the dynasty:
34
Georgey Porgey, pudding and pie,
Kissed the girls and made them cry -
When the boys come out to play,
Georgey Porgey runs away.
94
However, to decidedly claim that Georgie Porgie refers to any one of the kings
named George would be rather presumptuous, as there is no way of pin-pointing
precisely who the rhyme could refer to, though most of them were promiscuous
enough for the matter to be sung about. George I (1660-1727), who ruled the
United Kingdom from 1714 to 1727, had a mistress, Melusine von der Schulenburg,
by whom he had two daughters; George II (1683-1760), who ruled from 1727
to 1760, also had illegitimate children, and several mistresses, the most famous
of whom was Henrietta Howard, Countess of Suffolk; and George IV (1762-
1830), whose reign lasted from 1820 to 1830 even had an illegal wife, Mrs
Fitzherbert, a Roman Catholic, before officially marrying Princess Caroline of
Brunswick in 1795. Only George III (1738-1820), who was a king from 1760 to
1820, was known as a good family man, devoted to his wife. Nevertheless, the
claim for the identity of the person in the rhyme is rather vague, even more so
because of the fact that there are different versions of the rhyme containing
different names in the first line, such as Rowley Powley and Charley Barley.
As we saw in the previous example and several others, not every name found
in the rhymes can pass scrutiny under the eye of history. There are other rhymes
containing names, such as Wee Willie Winkie, and Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy
and Bess,
96
which do contain the names or nicknames of rulers, but to claim
that they refer to, for example, William IV or Elizabeth I, would be a leap of
faith. In addition, it should be stated that among the rhymes there is no reference
to rulers after the eighteenth century, possibly because of the relative fossilization
of the texts due to the appearance of printing press, and the fact that it was no
longer necessary to memorize and pass down the rhymes orally from generation
to generation. Many rhymes were preserved in print that would otherwise have
been lost; but, in turn, there was no longer so much need for inventing new
rhymes either, as literacy spread and reading took over.
35
36
4.
Growing up with Mother Goose
For every evil under the sun,
There is a remedy, or there is none.
If there be one, try and find it,
If there be none, never mind it.
97
T
he influence indirectly exercised by way of childrens literature can serve
numerous purposes, ranging from the relatively superficial ones to tackling
the innermost questions of the human soul, troublesome even to the adults.
Because nursery rhymes, due to their melodious nature, accompany children
from cradle to schooldays, [] their educational impact is considerable. They
are easily memorised, almost crawling into the subconscious, and they stay at
our disposal later in life. The words can come to our mind stimulated by
association, by any kind of situation, person or event. However, those words do
not come alone - they are accompanied by the unconsciously adopted attitudes
expressed in their content, by subtle messages incorporated in the rhymes.
98
For example, learning about proper behaviour and good manners in a fun way,
while singing and dancing to a tune is preferable to sitting silently, and not seldom
in fear, listening to endless bans and lectures from formidable adults, much
greater in size, since methods of discipline [...] play an important role in
development of self-concept, the ability to take responsibility for ones actions,
the way children learn to communicate with others, and how they learn to work
cooperatively with others.
99
Rhymes adapted to children represent a much more
desirable means of finding out about lifes difficulties in a subtle way, rather
than going through them without any kind of previous knowledge and opportunity
for preparation, or facing deep disappointment after being cruelly led to believe
that the world consists only of good. Therefore, we should use everything at our
disposal to help children in the process of growing up and becoming adults who
are well-prepared for life lying ahead of them. That is why it is vital to study
childrens literature, and try to identify possible directions towards which various
books lead on the road of personality development.
100
4.1 Presenting death as acceptable part of life
Introducing reality into childrens protected lives is a very important issue,
and nursery rhymes can provide valuable help in the task. One of the most difficult
topics that adults are faced with is presenting death as an acceptable part of life.
However, it was not always the case that death was considered a taboo subject
as it is today; in the past centuries, due to the lack of medical knowledge, the
death rate was much higher, especially among children. Books were published,
intended expressly for children - to instruct and to invite little children to the
exercise of early piety, one such being Last Words and Dyeing Expressions of
Hannah Hill, aged 11 years and near three Months (1714), a morbid account
of the death of a little Quakeress.
101
Nursery rhymes created at the time were
abundant in similar examples, as well, singing about death and dying as light-
heartedly as if it were any other subject:
There was an old woman had three sons,
Jerry and James and John,
Jerry was hanged, James was drowned,
John was lost and never was found;
And there was an end of her three sons,
Jerry and James and John!
102
Modern society, however, no longer considers death an appropriate subject,
even for most of ordinary conversations, let alone childrens poetry. A possible
reason for this lies in the fact that talking about death brings about the difficult task
of thinking about our own mortality. When confronted with it, people often use
clichs, trying to avoid direct mentioning. Therefore, a deceased person goes to
Heaven or on a long trip. This is not a problematic issue in a conversation between
adults, who are aware of the meaning of the metaphor; children, on the other hand,
often take language literally and such clichs can hinder the grief process,
making the understanding of the concept of death even more difficult.
103
In her
book Children Also Grieve: Talking about Death and Healing (2005), Linda
Goldman provides an example of what could happen if such language is used
around children: Lin heard in nursery school that her friend, Sumi, lost her mother.
How could she lose her, she asked in a panicked voice. She was so big. To
prevent similar misunderstandings, adults need to encourage open communication,
and use with children the language as simple and as direct as possible, with
straightforward, age-appropriate explanations. Because adults may consciously
or unconsciously inhibit children from expressing feelings due to their own discomfort
or inability to speak of death, rhymes dealing with death and passing of life can
provide valuable help by offering prompts for open discussion and stimulating
children to pose difficult questions concerning various stages of life:
Solomon Grundy,
Born on a Monday,
Christened on Tuesday,
Married on Wednesday,
Took ill on Thursday,
Worse on Friday,
Died on Saturday,
Buried on Sunday:
This is the end of
Solomon Grundy.
105
37
Funerals are an important point to be considered when a person close to a
child dies. Contrary to some opinions, it is possible to take a child as young as
seven to a funeral [but] the child must be prepared in advance,
106
in order for
the difficult event not to become a traumatic one, as losing the reality of
participation in the burial can bring pathological grief, which often occurs after
a sudden death.
107
Introducing the concept of a funeral at an early age, and well
before any real death occurs, can help a child cope with the tragedy much more
efficiently, not adding to the confusion. This can be accomplished through the
use of rhymes that explore the rituals and customs connected with funerals, so
that children would at least know what awaits them. The rhyme describing the
death of a bird, Cock Robin, familiarises a child with customary actions connected
with burials, such as digging a grave, singing a psalm, carrying the coffin and
tolling the bell, while the division of roles among the bereaved birds introduces
the same roles in human society:
Wholl be the parson?
I, said the rook,
With my little book,
Ill be the parson.
Wholl be chief mourner?
I, said the dove,
I mourn for my love,
Ill be chief mourner.
Most importantly, it is necessary for children to gain an awareness of the
common signs of grief in order to feel reassurance, reduce anxiety, and normalize
the experience of death,
108
knowing what to expect both from themselves and
the people around them.
All the birds of the air
Fell sighing and sobbing,
When they heard the bell toll
For poor Cock Robin.
109
Comprehending the finality of death is difficult enough for many adults, let
alone children who find it hard to understand that when someone dies, we neer
shall see him more. A funeral signals acceptance of this reality and puts the
physical body in a final place that can be visited later on, in order to make the
separation gradual.
110
Stimulating children to express the feelings and memories
they have of the person deceased helps the process of healing, which is why it
is important to create a safe environment and a positive atmosphere for children
to remember their loved ones. Rhymes can be used to open a dialogue, first about
an impersonal topic - that of the rhyme, followed by a subtle glide into the childs
personal experience.
Old Grimes is dead, that good old man,
We neer shall see him more;
He used to wear a long brown coat
All buttoned down before.
111
38
Ordinary, everyday memories described with great affection in the rhyme can
instigate expressing similar reminiscences, thus preventing further psychological
complications if the pain is suppressed. Relieving troublesome feelings under
the supervision of a caring adult provides healthy conditions for the gradual
healing process to be successful; otherwise, thoughts and feelings may arrive
without warning, and children may feel unable to cope with their enormity.
112
4.2 Encouraging harmonious relationships
Another important issue that children have to become aware of is the need for
respecting boundaries and ownership, and nursery rhymes can provide help in
this field, as well.
A man went hunting at Reigate,
And wished to leap over a high gate;
Says the owner, Go round,
With your horse and your hound,
For you never shall leap over my gate.
113
Children are naturally curious, so not being allowed to inspect everything that
interests them and go everywhere they want represents a nuisance to them, so
much so because they often fail to see the reason for being banned from doing
something. This is why they need to be taught patiently, as a significant portion
of their development happens in interaction with others. It is the task of grown-
ups to gradually introduce them into the world that consists of separate human
beings and to recognize the different degrees of competence hidden within
childhood,
114
adapting the lessons accordingly. Nursery rhymes can be used for
the purpose from infancy, but the most efficient period is from the age of three
to four, as children develop an increased understanding of the separateness, but
inter-dependence of people at the time, while constantly working out how the
world of objects and people works.
115
Middle childhood, the period from the age of five to eleven, during which
children start going to school, is the time when children whose behaviour and
relationship difficulties may have been managed, tolerated or overlooked in the
home setting are revealed to have significant developmental problems when
faced with the expectations of school.
116
These problems can be manifested in
various ways, through bullying other children, for example, or stealing their
property in order to attract attention. Using rhymes that deal with such problems
in class serves multiple purposes; while simultaneously avoiding granting the
reward of gaining attention for unacceptable actions, they may help the problematic
children realize for themselves the causality of the world, and the existence of
consequences for misdeeds.
Tom, Tom, the pipers son,
Stole a pig, and away he run;
The pig was eat, and Tom was beat,
And Tom ran crying down the street.
117
39
Kindergartens, or schools in some cases, are places where children come in
contact and spend a significant amount of time with a comparatively large number
of other children usually for the first time in their lives. New problems arise that
they have to find a way to come to terms with; for example, it is difficult for
them to accept the fact that they are no longer the sole proprietors of the toys in
their vicinity, or the ones that set the rules for a game, as it may have been the
case thus-far. Because a great many peer conflicts arise from incompatible goals
or from different views on how a task should be accomplished,
118
timely
preparation for conditions in kindergarten or school is essential. The fact that
nobody gains by quarrelling can be introduced using the following rhyme:
There once were two cats of Kilkenny,
Each thought there was one cat too many,
So they fought and they fit,
And they scratched and they bit,
Till, excepting their nails
And the tips of their tails,
Instead of two cats, there werent any.
119
Instead of fighting, children should be stimulated to resolve conflicts with tolerance,
as this is a skill that they will find useful in various situations later in life.
Similarly, the futility of quarrel between siblings can be presented using the
rhyme Molly, my sister, and I fell out, or I love you well, my little brother.
120
This is an important issue because, when a life-long relationship is at stake, it is
essential to learn how to constructively resolve a conflict. However, a prerequisite
for this is the existence of a non-competitive atmosphere in the family; if children
have to compete for their parents love and attention constantly, it is highly
unlikely that their mutual relationship will develop into a cooperative one.
Not resolving a conflict when it occurs causes emotions such as anger,
resentment, fear, and dislike to be expressed indirectly; for example, anger can
become sulkiness, uncooperativeness, sarcasm, or talking behind the other persons
back.
121
Therefore, it is important to deal with these feelings as soon as they
occur in order to prevent new conflicts, but also to prevent their fossilisation and
incorporating into a childs personality if experienced too often. What was possibly
used as a taunting rhyme in the past can now be used in the context of teaching
children about emotions, even before they occur:
Heres Sulky Sue,
What shall we do?
Turn her face to the wall
Till she comes to.
122
This is a more productive lesson than the one offered in the not so often
published second stanza of the rhyme that promotes now outdated concept of
violence towards children:
If that should fail,
A smart touch with the cane,
Will soon make her good,
When she feels the pain.
123
40
4.3 The value of introspection
The increasing orientation of modern, or rather, western civilization towards
material culture and the superficiality promoted by the media, has led to the
growing development of similar attitudes in younger generations. Today, the
importance of appearance significantly outweighs spiritual values; youngsters
are frequently mesmerized with the looks and property, estimating people through
the quality and amount of those in their possession. It is the duty of the caretakers
to ward off such influences, and employ values that focus on looking beyond the
surface, both in terms of the self and others. The importance of introspection, as
well as the skill itself, should be introduced gradually, taking into account the
ability of a child to comprehend such matters, and always in accordance with
his or her age. While older children can take part in a direct dialogue on the topic,
preschoolers need stimulus for talk, adapted to their level of cognitive development.
For example, a nursery rhyme with the main character of an old woman who fell
asleep on the way to the market can serve the purpose of opening the dialogue
about a third person, which in itself does not represent a threatening and overly-
intrusive situation:
There came by a pedlar whose name was Stout,
He cut her petticoats all round about;
He cut her petticoats up to the knees,
Which made the old woman to shiver and freeze.
When the little old woman first did wake,
She began to shiver and she began to shake;
She began to wonder and she began to cry,
Lauk a mercy on me, this cant be I!
Dwelling on the topic of whether appearance itself defines a human being on
the example of the rhyme can further be expanded by discussing the importance
of the opinion of others and the extent to which one should go in identifying
oneself with the way others perceive him or her:
But if it be I, as I hope it be,
Ive a little dog at home, and hell know me;
If it be I, hell wag his little tail,
And if it be not I, hell loudly bark and wail.
124
Having acquired the terminology and understanding of the subject on an
impersonal example and in a non-intrusive way, children will be readier and
better equipped to start ruminating on their own attitudes, beliefs and emotions.
This is well worth investing the time and effort because childrens understanding
of the mind is important
125
as it will prevent many misunderstandings in their
future lives, preparing them for adulthood with a minimal amount of conflict,
both with themselves and their environment.
41
4.4 Understanding and expressing emotions
I do not like thee, Doctor Fell;
The reason why I cannot tell;
But this I know, and know full well,
I do not like thee, Doctor Fell.
126
Positive emotions, such as love and happiness, seldom present a problem in
the course of growing up; however, it is quite a different situation when the
emotions experienced are of a different kind, unpleasant or confusing. Some
children who have experienced early separations, losses, and hurts have never
come to recognise their own feelings, or may not have had the opportunity to
express those feelings safely.
127
Expressing emotions is an important issue,
especially for children, because without letting others know how they feel, it is
highly unlikely that help will be provided in any form, which is essential if the
child is to develop into a healthy individual.
In infancy, there may well be a one to one correspondence between emotional
experience and emotional expression - most infants show directly what they feel
inside. [...] As people age, expression is increasingly affected by cultural values,
and emotional experience and expression become more and more disparate.
128
The reason for this might lie in the fact that emotional aspects are not given
as much attention as other aspects of child development; they are either taken
for granted or, possibly, the caregivers themselves have not learned how to deal
with their own emotions successfully and lack the tools and knowledge to transfer.
However, teaching this skill in the early years is even more important than, for
example, pushing children towards academic achievement, which many parents
and teachers do, although it is something that is inevitably going to gain much
attention during school years. As early as the age of twenty months, children are
capable of using emotion language, and it is necessary to exploit this and actively
work with them on developing this skill, using every possible opportunity, as
the increased understanding that comes from the use of emotion language
promotes, maintains, and regulates social interactions.
129
It is also desirable to include additional stimulation in order to introduce various
aspects of emotional development. For instance, vicarious emotional responding,
i.e. responses on the account of another persons experience and emotional state,
can be discussed through the use of rhymes that encourage empathy as well as
sympathy with others, such as the following rhyme:
Little Tom Twig bought a fine bow and arrow,
And what did he shoot? why, a poor little sparrow,
Oh, fie, little Tom, with your fine bow and arrow,
How cruel to shoot at a poor little sparrow.
130
However, it is not advisable to enforce this line of thinking with very small
children, because preschoolers are only likely to be emotionally responsive to
everyday events (such as getting hurt or being made fun of) that cause distress
to familiar people or animals; it is useful for dealing with schoolchildren, though,
as it is during later childhood [that] the scope of childrens concerns generalizes
to conditions of unknown others who are less fortunate than themselves.
131
As emotional expression is a multi-dimensional construct [...] including
words, facial and vocal expressions, behaviors, and physiological arousal,
132
each and every one of these modalities should be encouraged in the emotional
education of children. For example, movement is vitally important to all
42
developing human beings,
133
as it provides relief from the stress of everyday
life, and its therapeutic effect is well known throughout the world. For instance,
circle dance, based on folk dances from around the world is often deemed to
hold archetypal, healing significance,
134
so when children hold their hands and
start singing Ring a-ring o roses, it is not only physically healthy, but serves
a psychological purpose as well, emphasizing unity of the group, and
unquestionable belonging of each individual. Therefore, setting aside regular
(or spontaneous) times for singing, dancing and action songs
135
can become a
pleasant routine and it is something that even preschoolers can successfully
participate in and benefit from.
4.5 Parent-child bonding
Dance, little Baby, dance up high!
Never mind, Baby, Mother is by.
Crow and caper, caper and crow,
There, little Baby, there you go!
Up to the ceiling, down to the ground,
Backwards and forwards, round and round;
Dance, little Baby and Mother will sing,
With the merry coral, ding, ding, ding!
136
Although the toy described in the rhyme, the rattle with a sprig of coral, lost
the popularity it had in the nineteenth century, the rhyme itself is as fresh as ever,
providing the background for lively actions that serve both the purpose of amusing
children and the more important one of creating attachment between parents and
children, in the process by which a parent and child (whether an infant or an
older child) become emotionally linked
137
in psychological terms known as
bonding. Contrary to the popular belief, forming a firm attachment between a
parent and a child is not always instantaneous and the popular myth that biological
parents have a magical secret connection to their children, one that usually enables
them to know exactly what to do and when to do it has not been proved to be
correct;
138
therefore, like any other relationship in life, parent-child relationship
needs to be constantly worked on. For example, while simultaneously helping
children to get to know their bodies, parents can use rhymes and fun activities
to make the educational process more interesting and emotionally involving.
This little pig went to market.
This little pig stayed at home.
This little pig had roast meat.
This little pig had none.
This little pig went to the barn door
And cried week, week, for more.
139
Infant amusements, like this finger rhyme, with lively movement to accompany
the lines, present a welcome and entertaining quality play-time, especially if
enriched by imaginative additions, such as tying a small set of bells around
each finger, as children will be fascinated by their own ability to generate sounds
and become more aware of their own bodies and their movements.
140
Another
rhyme that can be used for this purpose is Dance, Thumbkin, dance which
dedicates a stanza to each finger, naming the fingers in accordance with the old
43
tradition when each finger had a name - not only the thumb. Introducing the
names for facial features through rhymes such as Brow brinky or Here sits the
Lord Mayor could be combined with looking into a mirror, as it would benefit
the child in terms of self-acceptance and gaining self-confidence to observe a
loving parent cuddling and gently touching his or her face.
141
Also, it would serve
the beginning of awareness of difference and boundaries between self and others,
which is essential for true self-consciousness and self-awareness.
142
The Man in the Moon looked out of the moon,
Looked out of the moon and said,
Tis time for all children on the earth
To think about getting to bed!
143
After the vigorous play, the day should always be brought to a close slowly,
and sleep time introduced gradually, so as to avoid sleeping disturbances and
establish a healthy sleeping routine, in view of the fact that regular and ample
sleep is necessary for the general wellbeing of a child. The soft and soothing
sounds of a lullaby accompanied with gentle rocking in the arms of a parent are
an indispensable tool for calming a child and inducing sleep, since they re-create
the conditions he or she experienced as a foetus and remind of the movement
while in the womb.
Hush-a-bye, baby,
Daddy is near;
Mamma is a lady,
And thats very clear.
144
Apart from reinforcing the childs confidence in the strength of family ties,
lullabies such as this one can also be very comforting and they help children
learn how to soothe themselves. The idyllic images sung about in lullabies such
as Sleep, baby, sleep, with descriptions of little soft lambs and the scenes from
nature, or the welcoming of the night in Twinkle, twinkle, little star, create a
safe environment in the mind of a child and help reduce potential fear of the
dark. Needless to say, it is not recommendable to use intimidating lullabies, such
as Baby, baby, naughty baby, with threatening lines like Limb from limb at
once hell tear you, / Just as pussy tears a mouse or hell eat you, eat you, eat
you, / Every morsel snap, snap, snap, as it can cause nightmares and distress in
children. In addition, attempting to soothe a child with rhymes like Hush, baby,
my doll, I pray you, dont cry which promises the rewards of bread, milk, custard
and tarts, is not advisable because it can create a conditional link between food
and comforting, which could later in life lead to health problems - even if the
promise of the rhyme is not fulfilled in reality.
145
44
4.6 Absence of a parent
The mother-child attachment relationship is the first and most important
relationship [whereas] initially the fathers principal role is to be there for the mother
and to support her in an intimate bond with the child.
146
Fathers greater involvement
in child rearing, though, has been proven to affect emotional expressiveness and
minimise gender differences in children, as well as to help mothers and children
to differentiate and to become autonomous.
147
However, the view of the role of
father has undergone a change in recent decades and there are nowadays more and
more men who are socially accepted as primary caregivers to their children.
The ideal father had undergone an evolution from the colonial father, to the
distant breadwinner, to the modern involved dad, to the father as co-parent. [...]
Co-parents must share financial and care giving tasks and responsibilities equally
and their roles are gender-free.
148
This means that the importance of both parents presence in a childs life is
great, and the absence of one is detrimental to the childs well-being. Living in a
single-parent family, either because of divorce or parental death, creates
unfavourable conditions for the development of a healthy, well-adapted child;
therefore, children need all the help they can get in order to overcome the difficulties.
In case of divorce, efficient cooperation between parents, the ex-partners, is
essential because having contact with a child who is not resident may involve
a certain amount of emotional trauma on the part of the child and the parents.
149
From the very beginning of the process, children deserve to be thoroughly
acquainted with the situation, which seems to be the obvious thing to do; however,
in a study of preschool children from divorcing families, researchers found that
the children lacked accurate information about divorce and what they did know
was often inappropriate, frightening, and confusing.
150
Parents also often resort
to various means of attracting the affections of children, thus turning them against
the other parent and creating anxiety about divided loyalties.
Ill tell my mother when I get home
What a sad thing my father has done;
He earned a penny and spent a groat,
151
Burned a hole in his holiday coat.
152
It is crucial for the resident parent to make children recognize the fact that it
is not unwelcome for them to sport positive feelings towards the other parent
and talk about the pleasant things they experienced in the other household, and,
most importantly, that it is not a sign of disloyalty towards the parent at home
to express love and friendliness towards the weekend parent, because children
otherwise feel guilty and feel the need for taking sides. What is more, resident
parents should encourage the development of positive emotions by showing a
positive attitude on their own part, as well as the understanding and acceptance
of the childs need to spend time with the other parent, especially because
preschool children dont have a good sense of time, so a week is forever in
their world and they are afraid that the parent will forget about them when they
are gone;
153
therefore, they need reassurance that they will eventually see their
non-resident father or mother without negative consequences of any kind.
45
Hush, my baby, do not cry,
Papas coming by and by;
When he comes hell come in a gig,
Hi cockalorum, jig, jig, jig.
154
Regularly mentioning the other parent, if only through the medium of nursery
rhymes, is critical because, in the opposite case, it could become a taboo subject,
preventing the child from expressing a wide variety of feelings and asking for
help in dealing with them, since children who use active coping (e.g., seeking
social support) and who do not blame themselves for the separation adjust better
than those who cope via distraction or avoidance or who engage in self-blame.
155
It is of great consequence to understand that divorce is a process which begins
well before the actual separation of parents and can continue for a long time after
this particular event, and not to underestimate the importance of its effects on
children, as their reaction to a divorce is like their reaction to the death of a
loved one - notably for preschool children, who are confused because they
conceptualize a relationship only in terms of the persons physical presence, so
for them, love is being with the person.
156
Consequently, the death of a parent plays havoc with the psyche of a child,
causing even greater turmoil, since there is no possibility of ever being in the
physical presence of the deceased parent again. Once more, it is of utmost
importance to openly discuss the event, as well as to regularly mention the beloved
person, even if the child resists at first because the subject is too painful. If
necessary, it is again a good idea to introduce the dialogue via a nursery rhyme:
My father died a month ago
And left me all his riches;
A feather bed, and a wooden leg,
And a pair of leather breeches.
157
Another rhyme that could be used for the purpose of instigating talk in order to
release unacknowledged feelings is My daddy is dead, but I cant tell you how.
158
However, it should also be noted that it is not always advisable to insist on
mentioning, as it can sometimes be too hurtful. For example, in case of maternal
deprivation, the innocent infant amusement in which the childs nose is held
between two fingers and chopped off with the other hand, might create feelings
of uneasiness or unintentionally evoke deep sadness.
My mother and your mother
Went over the way;
Said my mother to your mother,
Its chop-a-nose day.
159
If not attended to, these feelings can develop into various disorders; therefore,
it is vital to be sensitive around children who are deprived of a parent, and mention
them only in the context of relieving children from internal pain.
46
Familiarising children with various aspects of reality, such as the acceptance
of death, or respect towards other people and things that belong to them, is of
great importance in timely preparation of children for the events that await them
in the future. Mother Goose nursery rhymes provide an abundant source of topics
which can be used as a prompt for discussion in a way which promotes positive
upbringing.
160
Even if the rhymes are not overtly discussed with children, the
incorporated messages undoubtedly stimulate them to contemplate on the subjects
and to reach their own conclusions that are subsequently stored in their
subconsciousness, waiting to be implemented in an interaction with peers, siblings,
parents or teachers.
161
In the course of life, challenging and frustrating incidents
are inevitable. However, the youngster who has a background in which he/she
has made personal decisions and choices can pull from a repertoire of strategies
to help work through the challenge.
162
It is the task of grown-ups to provide
children with the tools for acquiring the necessary knowledge both about
themselves and the world around them and the indispensable skill of dealing
with emotions. In order for children to be able to adequately and timely help
themselves, as well as to apply their knowledge to the benefit of others, developing
emotional intelligence is of the essence. However, it calls for great effort on the
part of the whole society to incorporate this aim into the already existing network
of accepted goals, and to work incessantly towards its accomplishment, because
the society that strives to produce emotionally healthy individuals is bound to
thrive on the fruit of its labour.
47
48
5.
Learning English with
Mother Goose
Heres A, B, and C,
D, E, F, and G,
H, I, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q,
R, S, T, and U,
W, X, Y, and Z;
And heres the childs Dad,
Who is sagacious and discerning,
And knows this is the Fount of Learning.
163
T
he potential of nursery rhymes as language teaching tools was recognized
explicitly as early as 1815, with the publishing of Tommy Thumbs song-
book, which opens with the part dedicated to language learning, entitled: Artificial
Memory for Infants; Whereby They May Acquire the Knowledge of Animals, and
Some of Their Sounds, before They Can Go or Speak. Adorned with woodcuts,
the state-of-the-art illustration of the time, it follows modern principles of teaching
children new words using visual stimulus, while giving the educators meticulous
instructions in terms of the teaching method. Today, nearly two hundred years
later, teaching vocabulary is considered a much more complex process, demanding
various activities and ample opportunities for interacting with new vocabulary
items. In teaching preschoolers, as well as children at the early school age, there
is an additional element to consider - the fact that children actively try to make
sense, i.e. to find and construct a meaning and purpose for what adults say to
them and ask them to do, [and] can only make sense in terms of their world
knowledge, which is limited and partial.
164
This is why it is advisable to use
different approaches to teaching new vocabulary items, depending on the age
of the children in question. Considering the fact that, in Piagets opinion, the
preschool period is characterised by the development of language, drawing,
imitation, and symbolic play, it is necessary to adapt teaching methods accordingly.
For example, younger children will more readily accept the concept of family
also existing in a language other than their own if terms they have learnt are
reinforced through singing a rhyme, followed by drawing a picture of a family
as described in the rhyme:
Bye, Baby bunting,
Fathers gone a hunting,
Mothers gone a milking,
Sisters gone a silking,
And Brothers gone to buy a skin
To wrap the Baby bunting in.
165
Nursery rhymes are most useful if they are applied after the target vocabulary
has been introduced and practiced sufficiently in order for children not to be
discouraged and the activity not to be futile. Also, the motivation for acquiring
new vocabulary increases if children are prepared in advance for the activity to
come and they know that the new words will help them understand the rhyme.
Nursery rhymes that contain colour words present an example illustrating this
point. Their usefulness in the teaching process is the greatest if they are
accompanied by an illustration, the obligatory element being the presence of the
colour that has been taught (see Figure 4), as that is one of the best ways to ensure
that children are receptive enough to make valuable connections between their
existing knowledge of colours in general, their names in the mother tongue, and
the words denoting colours in the target language:
Little Betty Blue
Lost her holiday shoe;
What shall little Betty do?
Give her another
To match the other
And then shell walk upon two.
166
Other rhymes that can be used for this purpose are Lavenders blue, for
green and blue, for green alone Rain on the green grass, for red and blue
Roses are red, etc.
168
Until recently, in accordance with Piagetian stance, educators were reluctant
to include learning about abstract categories, for doing so was asking children
to deal with tasks for which they lacked the conceptual capabilities. However,
in view of new research, this attitude has been re-examined, resulting in the
conclusion that using abstract classification schemes on the part of young children
depends on the previously acquired knowledge about what needs to be sorted.
Therefore, an additional strategy can be employed for vocabulary teaching which
helps children make connections between their mother tongue and English, and
that is grouping words into lexical sets, because the existence of lexical sets
enables [them] to see the structure of the lexicon as consisting of clusterings into
49
Figure 4. An illustration of the nursery rhyme Little Betty Blue
167
patterns of reference usually related to a single topic.
169
When young children
are taught vocabulary around a topic or lexical set, for example animals, it
is advisable to start with basic level words within the hierarchy, because at the
basic level, a childs experience with the physical world links directly into the
development of concepts and vocabulary, serving as an entry point for
learning.
170
The task of familiarising children with the names of different animals
can and should be accompanied by either using toys, if available, or any kind of
visual stimulus, as previously stated (see Figure 5).
Because learning a word does not take place instantaneously and requires
exposures in different contexts, it is necessary to introduce new words gradually,
with ample opportunities for recycling. After conducting various games using
flash cards with animal images, such as Bingo, Listen and identify/take away,
Find the odd one out, or Listen and put (picture dictation), it can be useful to
introduce a number of rhymes dealing with animals,
171
in order to contextualise
new vocabulary in a fresh way and provide children with new possibilities of
applying the acquired knowledge. An additional opportunity for repetition and
application, after the children have received sufficient information, could be a
follow-up activity where children, with the guidance of the teacher, can produce
a picture map of a simple two-category classification of animals, either by drawing
the animals or by sticking on the board the pictures from the set used in games
and introducing vocabulary (see Figure 6).
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Figure 5. Flash cards with animal images
Older children can also add animal names beneath the pictures, or replace
them with the words altogether, thus creating word maps. As the next, more
advanced step, once the matter is fully grasped, further classification can be
performed (domestic animals can be divided in two groups: pets and farm animals,
for example), perhaps as an informal form of testing the knowledge. Maps like
these can be transformed into wall posters, decorating the walls of the classroom,
but more importantly, serving simultaneously as a constant reminder of the terms
learned, as words that are not activated or linked to specific episodic memory
events may eventually fade from memory if there is no further use of the word
or reason to retain it in memory.
172
In order to keep hold of the acquired knowledge, it is worthwhile to carry out
some planned activities from time to time, such as coming up with definitions
or inventing riddles for each of the words memorised, and afterwards, when
given the clues, students try to guess which word meets them. A similar activity
could be for one student to think of a word from a map, while others ask questions
until the word is uncovered. As a more independent activity on the part of the
learners, the project of keeping picture journals can be undertaken. This is more
suitable as a task for school children, as it implies organising the journal in a
51
Figure 6. Two-category classification of animals
dictionary-like way, dividing it in sections according to the letters of the alphabet
and adding new words as they come along, both with illustrations and definitions.
However, when working with children at preschool and early school age, it is
important to remember to keep the chosen activity entertaining and, above all,
meaningful for the children, and avoid grading at all costs, as it deals solely
with the knowledge of students, i.e. determining the degree of success or failure
in the given field,
173
not taking into account the childs efforts, and it can lead
to partial or complete loss of interest, or even aversion towards language learning.
That is why students must be helped to develop word consciousness, [...] an
awareness of, interest in, and inquisitiveness towards words.
174
Vocabulary development is an important part of language learning, as it is
deeply interwoven with all four essential language skills. Once new vocabulary
is introduced, it is important to keep recycling it periodically, in various activities,
while simultaneously enriching the context and developing new connections.
One of the ways in which we can achieve the necessary repetition is by using
nursery rhymes to provide meaningful context and reinforce memorising new
vocabulary items, at different stages of cognitive development - first, through
listening, then, through oral repetition, next through recognition of items in
written texts, and finally through producing them in writing.
5.1 Developing listening and speaking skills
Just like during the acquisition of a childs mother tongue, listening and
speaking are the skills that are the first to develop while learning a foreign
language in early childhood. Naturally, children who have yet to master literacy
in their own language, and come to grips with its more advanced aspects, need
to be exposed solely to oral language at the very beginning of their English
language learning if it is to be successful, because it is the childrens ability to
listen that has enabled them to join in with the speech of adults from the time
that they were a few months old [and] given them clues about the sounds and
sound combinations which are used to form acceptable words, so that by the
time children reach preschool age, most of them will have also mastered most
of the phonemes or sound units of the speech used in their home or community.
175
By the time they reach school age, they already possess a set of skills that is
helpful in learning a foreign language. According to Susan Halliwell, the author
of Teaching English in the Primary Classroom (1992), children:
- are already very good at interpreting meaning without necessarily understanding
the individual words;
- already have a great skill in using limited language creatively;
- frequently learn indirectly rather than directly;
- take great pleasure in finding and creating fun in what they do;
- have a ready imagination;
- above all take great delight in talking.
In view of the fact that sound systems of various languages usually differ in
both the number of phonemes and their quality, children need to be presented
with as many opportunities as possible to listen to the target language, preferably
native speaker pronunciation, even if only in the form of recorded material
because, according to the Critical Period Hypothesis, the younger children are
when first exposed to a language other than their mother tongue, the greater is
52
the probability of an accent which is native-like. Recorded nursery rhymes, for
example, offer a valuable source for oral language development, sugar-coated
in appealing melodies that invite children to join in actively. However, nursery
rhymes cannot be used in isolation; their use needs to be preceded by detailed
preparation of children in terms of both vocabulary introduction and careful
guidance through the gist of the storyline. In order to establish the connection
between words and their meaning, it helps to accompany this type of activity
with movement or with representative objects or pictures. We can further help
children in their interpretation of meaning by making sure we make full use of
gesture, intonation, demonstration, actions and facial expressions to convey
meaning parallel to what we are saying.
176
Teachers of young learners, especially five-to seven-year-olds, need to bear
in mind yet another important fact:
The adult world and the childs world are not the same. Children do not always
understand what adults are talking about. Adults do not always understand what
children are talking about. The difference is that adults usually find out by asking
questions, but children dont always ask. They either pretend to understand, or
understand in their own terms and do what they think you want them to do.
177
That is why it can happen that a teacher cannot always notice that children do
not understand the task, since they do whatever is in their might to please their
teacher and fulfil the required tasks without real understanding, which results in
their missing out on the opportunity to learn and creates problems in accomplishing
further tasks, when what is learnt needs to be built on. As children grow older,
this state of affairs starts to change, so that eight-to ten-year-olds start asking
questions and understanding the world of adults.
While gradually sorting out the language rules, the beginning speaker is
creative, determined and resourceful as he or she struggles to use a limited hold
on speech in order to communicate important new meanings.
178
That is why
teachers need to show respect towards all utterances on the part of children,
however ungrammatical they are, thus nurturing a friendly and non-threatening
environment for children to develop the ability to question, reason, formulate
ideas, pose hypotheses and exchange ideas with others,

because a positive
atmosphere in the classroom and good relationships leading to feelings of self-
worth and acceptance are essential for all learning and especially for the
development of oral language.
179
However obvious it might seem, it, nevertheless, must be emphasised that the
indispensable part of learning to speak in a foreign language is actually being
provided with ample opportunities to talk, as well as with adequate topics, possibly
derived from the previously employed listening material. An idea for one such
activity can be borrowed from L. Frank Baum and his Mother Goose in Prose
(1901), where, as it has already been explained, he used a number of Mother
Goose nursery rhymes to develop elaborate stories around their simple plots.
This proposition will be illustrated on two practical examples, the first one aimed
at preschool children, using the nursery rhyme Hickory Dickory Dock which
describes a simple action and L. Frank Baums story with the same title, as a
basis for a model lesson plan with teaching instructions:
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Lesson 1
Part 1: Start the lesson by introducing any one of the illustrations accompanying
the nursery rhyme Hickory Dickory Dock in nursery rhyme books or, in this
case, a black and white picture ready to be coloured, enlarged to be suitable for
the use of the whole class (e.g. Figure 7). Discuss the picture with the children,
using this opportunity to familiarize the children with the necessary vocabulary
at the very beginning of the lesson in order for them to be able to follow the
activity. Start off by asking personal questions (asking children what they can
see in the picture, if they like the picture/the clock/the mouse, what the mouse
is doing, etc.) and pre-teach the new vocabulary through a fun activity. If a black
and white picture is used, you could encourage children to colour it, thus making
a personalised poster for further use.
Part 2: Play the song for the children, using mime simultaneously, and
incorporating as much body language as possible, especially when working with
very young learners so as to stimulate them to accompany you, because physical
activity provides an additional stimulus for children to stay focused on the rhyme.
Singing the song yourself, encourage the children to join you.
Beneath is the transcript of the song No. 4 from the audio compact disc Little
Bo Peep: 23 Songs, Stories and Nursery Rhymes (2002):
Hickory Dickory Dock,
The mouse ran up the clock.
The clock struck one,
The mouse ran down!
Hickory Dickory Dock.
Part 3: Let the children try to accompany the recording on their own, without
your help.
54
Figure 7. A black and white illustration of the nursery rhyme Hickory Dickory Dock
180
Lesson 2
Part 1: Start the lesson by positioning the poster the children coloured for all
of them to see, in order to refresh their memory, as well as to stimulate them to
talk about what they remember from the previous lesson. If the lessons are more
than one or two days apart, you might need to prompt them with questions.
Part 2: Play the recording again, telling the children to sing along, joining in
immediately.
Part 3: Based on the picture and the rhyme, ask the children specific questions
about the mouse, the clock, what they think the story behind this situation is,
etc., letting them guess freely. At this stage, it is important to show genuine
interest in their suggestions, and help them to illustrate the ideas on a poster-
sized paper for further reference. Stimulate the development of their stories by
asking additional questions. Take care that the questions directly stem from what
children have proposed.
Lesson 3
Part 1: Show the picture again, and ask the children to sing the song, if possible
without the help of the recording; again, if the classes are too much apart, it might
be necessary to refresh their memory by playing the song.
Part 2: Turn their attention to the poster they created, prompting them to repeat
some of the stories they invented in the previous class.
Part 3: Tell the children that they are going to hear a story on the same topic.
Explain to them that the story is a guess as well - only one of the many possible
developments, and that the author invented it just as they had done in the previous
lesson. This is important because, otherwise, children might feel that they have
failed in the task of trying to invent the story behind the rhyme, and lose interest
in the next similar activity if they draw the conclusion that the stories they came
up with were wrong. Then, either read, or play the recording of L. Frank Baums
story Hickory Dickory Dock.
181
If the children in question are too young and
do not have the attention span to support the length of the original story, you
might decide to shorten and simplify it linguistically so it is more suitable for
younger students.
The other example is more adequate for older primary school children, as it
requires more advanced skills, and it is based on the nursery rhyme Mary, Mary
Quite Contrary and L. Frank Baums story Mistress Mary which is much more
elaborately developed than the previous one, and almost double in length:
Lesson 1
Part 1: Start the lesson by introducing an illustration of Mary, Mary, quite
contrary nursery rhyme, enlarged for the use of the whole class. Discuss the
picture with the children, asking them what they can see in it, again, using the
opportunity to familiarize them with the necessary vocabulary at the very beginning
of the lesson in order for them to be able to follow the activity.
Part 2: Play the song for the children. Then, teach the children the song, singing
it yourself and encouraging the children to join you. Beneath is the transcript of
the song No. 12 from the audio compact disc Little Bo Peep: 23 Songs, Stories
and Nursery Rhymes (2002):
55
Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells and cockle-shells,
And pretty maids all in a row, row, row,
And pretty maids all in a row.
Part 3: Let the children try to accompany the recording on their own, without
your help.
Lesson 2
Part 1: Start the lesson by showing children the picture again, to refresh their
memory, and talk about what they remember from the previous lesson.
Part 2: Play the recording again, telling the children to sing along, joining in
immediately.
Part 3: Ask the children who they think Mary was, letting them guess freely.
Help them to write down their ideas. Stimulate the development of their stories
by asking additional questions. Again, take care that the questions are connected
with what children have proposed.
Lesson 3
Part 1: Show the picture again, and ask the children to sing the song, if possible
without the help of the recording; again, if the classes are too much apart, it might
be necessary to refresh their memory by playing the song.
Part 2: Turn their attention to the poster they created, prompting them to repeat
some of the stories they invented in the previous class.
Part 3: Tell the children that they are going to hear a story on the same topic,
again, reassuring the children about the validity of their own stories. Then, either
read, or play the recording of L. Frank Baums story Mistress Mary.
This line of lessons can be followed by introducing another nursery rhyme in
a similar way, but it could be one that has not been developed by L. Frank Baum,
182
so that, once children have grasped the skill of story telling through the elaborate
examples of his stories, they get the opportunity to invent the stories themselves,
without a reference model. Repeating the pattern of the lessons is recommendable,
as children benefit from knowing the rules and being familiar with the situation.
183
The usefulness of routines lies in the fact that they allow the child to actively
make sense of new language from familiar experience and provide a space or
language growth.
184
Also, a similar, but more advanced activity, for older children in primary
school based on the second example can be trying to come up with rhymes using
the provided pattern, since, in the Mistress Mary story, Mary has a friend, the
Squire, who she talks to in rhymes:
Then he said to her in rhyme (for it was a way of speaking the jolly Squire had),
Mistress Mary, so contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With dingle-bells and cockle-shells
And cowslips all in a row!
And Mary, being a sharp little girl, and knowing the Squires queer ways,
replied to him likewise in rhyme, saying,
I thank you, Squire, that you enquire
How well the flowers are growing;
The dingle-bells and cockle-shells
And cowslips all are blowing!
185
56
Listening and speaking are skills that need to be actively worked on and it is
well worth the effort to insist on incorporating the plans for their development
into the language learning curriculum on a larger scale. They are an essential
part of preparing learners for real communication - even more so with children,
as their needs are much more restricted to oral language, which is why teachers
must accept the appropriateness of children-talk in class, without fear of necessarily
losing control over an undisciplined classroom.
Teachers who do not understand the place of talk in learning, who do not
value talk at school and who feel insecure about noise in the classroom will
influence their pupils perceptions of talk. Children taught by teachers such as
those described above will not see speaking and listening as work, and when
they are given opportunities to speak will tend to use talk socially rather than
as a means of learning.
186
5.2 Developing reading and writing skills
Reading and writing are nowadays most commonly referred to using the term
literacy, thus emphasising the fact that these two skills present two sides of the
same coin, rather than two completely separate activities. Individuals are generally
considered literate if they are able to successfully use the letters or any other
signs characteristic of a language in order to read and write.
187
Furthermore,
learning to read and write are closely connected and founded upon childrens
oral language competence, and their unconscious expectation that written language,
like oral language, contains meaning, follows a particular structure and comprises
sentences, words and parts of words.
188
It is crucial to note, however, that during
the early phases of learning, children should be presented with written words
that they are already familiar with in the oral form.
In addition, in order for literacy to develop successfully, it is necessary to take
into account certain factors that indicate a childs readiness for learning these
skills. Various theories have been developed around this issue that support
different points of view, sometimes even conflicting ones. For example, in 1931,
Morphett and Washburne developed the Maturation Theory, according to which
reading instruction to children was to be postponed until they were developmentally
ready, i.e. at the mental age of six years and six months. On the other hand, the
Theory of Literacy Development, devised by Don Holdaway in 1979, advocated
early literacy learning, starting with the first contact of children with the books
read to them and the first sight of adults writing. This theory advised parents to
encourage the first attempts of children to read and write, however inaccurately,
so that they would naturally progress towards more advanced performance. In
addition to these theories, while in agreement that literacy development starts
almost simultaneously with oral language development, the Emergent Literacy
Theory (1966) emphasises the importance of literacy-rich home environments
and the availability of a variety of reading materials.
189
In the 1980s, Stage Model
theorists started proposing various models describing the phases children go
through on their way to proficiency in reading and writing. However different,
these models have one thing in common - they all stress that the development
of word recognition has three stages: visual cue reading, phonetic cue reading,
and phonological recoding, or, alternatively named, the logographic stage, the
alphabetic stage and the orthographic stage.
190
Additional problems arise with the task of teaching literacy in a foreign
language, especially if the scripts of the target language and the mother tongue
57
differ, as in the example of English, with Latin script, and Serbian, with both
Latin and Cyrillic scripts in use. This particular situation causes further confusion,
since children do not have the option of simply assigning one script to one
language, thus mentally separating them efficiently. Therefore, it is advisable
either to wait with learning to read and write in English until children have
completely mastered Latin script in Serbian, approximately until the age of nine,
or, if English language learning begins early in life, at preschool age, to gradually
start with literacy development, thus utilising the helpful mental separation of
the two scripts to the benefit of the development of both. However much opposed,
the latter option is still a more productive solution than to simply let children
use Cyrillic script for spelling English words, without guidance on the phonics
of the English language, which is what they inevitably start doing once they feel
the need for writing words down in order to remember them more easily or simply
to play with them, as they simultaneously do with the words of their mother
tongue. It is important not to miss the period when children are motivated
themselves, because they learn literacy skills in the process of using writing
and reading for their own purposes, [just as] the pleasures and the advantages of
communicating first launched them into talking.
191
However, given the
importance of oral skills being established before beginning to read, if very young
(under 6 years) foreign language learners do begin reading and writing, this
should be at a very simple level; on the other hand, in teaching children from
the age of six to nine, teachers can already employ some of the methods used
with children for whom English is a first language, perhaps with extra stress put
on those aspects of English literacy that contrast most strongly with the learners
first language reading and writing.
192
Furthermore, it is worth considering using
similar motivational material that led children into speaking in the foreign
language, an option for this being the use of familiar nursery rhymes again, with
the additional subtle help for the process of learning provided by the fact that
the familiar cadence evokes the sense of security and pleasantness of the earliest
years. However, while the mother or nurse does not employ a jingle because it
is a nursery rhyme per se, but because in the pleasantness (or desperation) of the
moment it is the first thing which comes to mind,
193
teachers do have a choice,
and the liberty to use nursery rhymes with premeditation, carefully planning
activities around them and the purposes for using them.
Literacy development theories offer invaluable help in the process of organising
such activities in the classroom. For example, Holdaways recommendation to
use big-sized books is beneficial as it makes the rhymes and the illustrations
accompanying them clearly visible to all students in a group, thus recreating
positive feelings of the time that children have when they sit in their parents
laps and are read to at home, while the text of the rhymes contributes to the
process because it is characterized by repetition, cumulative sequence, rhyme,
and rhythm to entice the children and hook them on the language patterns.
194
Stage Models of Reading offer the possibility of organising literacy teaching
in controlled steps using nursery rhymes as the vehicle. The logographic stage,
when the words are memorized by context and shape, can be the phase when
children are introduced to familiar nursery rhymes in a novel and entertaining
form (see Figure 8).
Children in the alphabetic stage of development (when they are beginning
to use letter-sound cues to read words) will benefit from activities that help them
master automatic letter recognition,
196
such as familiarising with alphabet through
ABC books of nursery rhymes that emphasise key letters, since knowing the
visual shape of the letters is a precondition for learning to read (Figure 9).
58
Using rhymes in this way is motivating for children because they make
connections with what they already know, creating visual associations as well,
and it is much more meaningful than abstract and unconnected chanting of letter
names and shapes.
198
Letter names can also be taught to children using rhymes that contain all the
letters of the English alphabet, as in the example below, where a new verb is
introduced after each key letter:
59
Figure 8. A representation of Bobby Shafto nursery rhyme
195
Figure 9. Letters accompanied by pictures and rhymes about animals
197
A was an apple pie,
B bit it,
C cut it,
D dealt it...
199
When using Mother Goose nursery rhymes for this particular purpose, it is
necessary to note the existence of the rhymes within the corpus that do not contain
all the letters of the alphabet, some missing a letter or two, and some failing to
attend to whole groups of letters.
Although learning the alphabet as a set of letter names is often a key part of
teaching reading, [...] much more important for learning to read is childrens
growing knowledge of the links between the written letters and the sounds they
represent, which is where nursery rhymes can have an important role, because
phonological awareness develops before children go to school, and seems to
be linked to experience with rhyming words in songs and rhymes.
200
At this
stage, in order to enhance the development of rhyme analogies, it is useful, for
example, to present children with an enlarged copy of a familiar nursery rhyme
with the rhymes missing and the cards with the missing words for children to
supply (see Figure 10). When the rhyme is dealt with in this way, the text is not
broken into a disembodied exercise, and the childrens experience of it continues,
leaving the pleasure of the rhyme intact and providing the child with the sense
of accomplishment, as this activity also helps build an understanding of how
the poem is made.
201
On the example of this poem, children not only learn about the words that
rhyme, but they also receive an invaluable lesson in phonics, and start to realise
that phonemes, for example, /u:/ in two and you, do not necessarily have to
be represented by the same graphemes, just as the words ending in // can have
completely different spellings:
Pussy cat sits by the fire,
So pretty and so fair.
In walks the little dog,
Ah, Pussy, are you there?
202
Most nursery rhymes are very repetitive, and they help children identify some
patterns in the confusing spelling of the English language; thus, they start making
generalizations in writing (see Figure 11).
60
Figure 10. A flash card with the rhymes missing and the cards with the missing words
When children are familiar with the texts of the rhymes used, it is much easier
for them to perceive the relationship between the sub-syllabic units of onset
and rime:
203
If I had a donkey that wouldnt gO.
Would I beat him? Oh no, nO.
Id put him in the barn and give him some cORN,
The best little donkey that ever was bORN.
204
To recognise this is especially important, as children have only twenty-six
graphemes at their disposal to represent forty-four phonemes in writing. It is
necessary for teachers to put themselves in childrens position and realise the
scope of their initial confusion produced by the fact that the relationship, for
example, between digraphs and the phonemes they represent, is not always
straightforward as one might wish; for instance, // can be written both as SH
and TI, or CH pronounced both as /k/ and /t/. Another example, phoneme
/eI/, offers various possibilities for graphic representation, not even all of which
are listed below:
1. day - AY
2. rain - AI
3. rein - EI
4. reign - EIG
5. eight - EIGH
6. straight - AIGH
7. bacon - A
8. late - A-E
9. great - EA
10. grey - EY
11. champagne - AG-E
12. fte - -E
205
Apart from spelling, children also need to start developing their punctuation
skills. As early as the age of five, children are learning to use capital letters,
full stops and question marks correctly, and beginning to use speech marks in
their writing.
206
Nursery rhymes can be of aid in this phase of learning, as well.
At the very beginning, they can be used for turning childrens attention to the
existence of capital letters:
Great A, little a,
Bouncing B!
The cats in the cupboard,
And cant see me.
207
61
Figure 11. A fill-in exercise
As children acquire greater punctuation skills through various forms of practice,
they will start noticing the existence of capital letters in different texts and slowly
start implementing the knowledge to their own writing.
For practising other aspects of punctuation, additional exercises can be introduced:
Every lady in this land
Has twenty nails upon each hand
Five and twenty on hands and feet
All this is true without deceit.
208
Without punctuation marks, this nursery rhyme is seemingly nonsensical, even
stating false claims as the only point of orientation are the boundaries of a line;
however, if we introduce commas in appropriate places, thus creating run-on
lines, the meaning changes drastically: Every lady in this land / Has twenty
nails, upon each hand / Five, and twenty on hands and feet / All this is true without
deceit (for another example, see Figure 12).
Using different colours to emphasise tone units in speech can also help children
who have difficulty when reading connected texts. Because their memory spans
are limited, and words can drop out of short term memory before the child reader
gets to the end of the sentence and has a chance to work out the meaning of the
whole,
209
it is advisable to introduce various forms of help in order to reduce
anxiety connected with unsuccessful reading. Using rhymes that children know,
perhaps even by heart, provides a safe beginners environment for a stress free
start in reading. However, care must be taken to choose the rhymes with
straightforward and well-known vocabulary, as well as with standard sentence
construction and word order. The additional support of using colours for grouping
individual words in a meaningful way reduces the need for early readers to work
on each word as a separate unit, working out what it is and storing it in memory
while the next word is tackled

(Figure 13).
210
Another way of utilising sense groups, again accompanied by colour, is to cut
the text of a rhyme into strips for children to sort out, and re-form the rhyme on
the basis of their knowledge, or, if adapted to preschoolers, who may be able to
read or write only a few words, to sort out mixed flashcards with images of the
main events of the rhyme, accompanied with printed names of the main characters,
for example. For this reason, it is necessary that the rhyme is well known to children,
so that they would be able to accomplish the task successfully (Figure 14).
62
Figure 12. Using different colours while rewriting the rhyme to add punctuation
marks additionally helps children notice separate semantic units more efficiently
Because in learning to read and to write, children have to make links from
meaning to what they see (printed texts), what they hear (the spoken language)
and what they produce (written words),
212
the activity could be further continued
by asking the children to write the rhyme on a piece of paper. Again, in order to
introduce the purpose to the act of writing, the rhyme could be presented in a
large format, for example, to adorn the walls of the classroom, or on small paper,
written as a present for parents and illustrated in accordance with the content.
The development of writing and reading skills is crucial in todays world
saturated with information in all of its forms, from handwritten sources on paper
to the vast sea of printed information available via computers. There comes a
time in every childs life when he or she experiences limits to acquisition of
knowledge solely through oral language; unless the child responds to this need,
consequences are harsh and inevitable. Bias towards the illiterate is often strong:
they are subjectively perceived as less intelligent or less powerful, because of
their restricted access to further education.
213
Both reading and writing require of children a great effort; however, writing
is traditionally considered to require much more activity, because reading heavily
relies on recognition and understanding, whereas writing includes production
and creativity as cognitive processes. However, the dominance of reading at all
63
Figure 13. Nursery rhyme Little Bo Peep, with differently coloured groups of words
211
Figure 14. In creating exercises like this one, it is important to keep the fonts used
simple, as varying shapes of letters would cause confusion with beginning readers
levels of education reinforces the problematic banking metaphor of learning: the
assumption that students are vessels to be filled.
214
That is why it is important
not to assign greater importance to any one language skill over the others. A
balanced view should show acceptance and recognition of the fact that literacy
in the early years is still a matter of building on, developing and extending
young childrens emerging and considerable skills as communicators, speakers,
listeners, writers and readers,
215
and that all four language skills ought to be
given equal attention.
Since Mother Goose nursery rhymes are a common ingredient of various
programs and are often included in students books used in English language
teaching, especially at preschool and early school age, it is important that the
teachers using them are well-acquainted with the various aspects of these rhymes,
and the possibilities for work that they offer.
216
Being aware of the existence
of both positive and negative pedagogical and psychological messages, along
with the critical approach to the rhymes is of immense importance, because of
the far-reaching consequences that the knowledge and attitudes acquired at an
early age can have on the life of a child. In addition, occasional sharing of the
information on the historical origin of the rhymes can spice up the learning
process for older students, provided it is supplied only as an entertaining element.
Although many rhymes contain archaic expressions and language, even much
younger children do not find them confusing. They readily accept them, both at
home and in school. Mother Goose nursery rhymes, although waning in popularity
with adults at certain times and reemerging at others, never cease to amaze
children, who remain the ultimate judges.
64
65
6.
Notes
1 Grover (1915)
2 Miles (1912: 290-2)
3 Thorpe (1852: 74-5)
4 Baum (1901)
5 Opie (1997: 37)
6 Willcox Smith (1914: 60)
7 Halliwell-Phillipps (1849: 12), for familiar form of the nursery rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac
(2008a: 149)
8 Opie (1997: 34)
9 Opie (1997: viii)
10 Baring-Gould (1962: 13)
11 Baring-Gould (1962: 297)
12 see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 149, 153)
13 Baum (1901)
14 Willcox Smith (1914: 147)
15 Opie (1997: 355)
16 McGillis (2003: 114)
17 Baring-Gould (1962: 12)
18 Opie (1997: 228)
19 for the text of the ballad and the rhymes, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 156-7)
20 Baring-Gould (1962: 12)
21 Willcox Smith (1914: 103)
22 for full text of the ballad, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 199-201)
23 Quiller-Couch (2001)
24 Now Sc. & dial. [...] adj. Great; considerable in size, bulk, number, importance, or amount or
degree. (Oxford Talking Dictionary, 1998)
25 sing. & (usu.) in pl. Prayer; devotions, latterly spec. using a rosary. arch. (Oxford Talking
Dictionary, 1998)
26 Opie (1997: 441)
27 to the best of the authors knowledge
28 Child (1882-1898: Ballad 117A.1, 2, 3) (for full text of the ballad and the translation into modern
English, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 201-44)
29 The division of a poem, a canto [...] Now hardly ever used. (Cuddon, 1999: 271)
30 for full text of the ballad as well as the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 158-60, 245-6)
31 Opie (1997: 211)
32 for the text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 160)
33 Halliwell-Phillipps (1849: 16-17)
34 Opie (1997: 24)
35 Opie (1997: 25)
36 Halliwell-Phillipps (1844: 166)
37 for full text of the rhymes, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 160-1)
38 Halliwell (1846: 37)
39 there is also a rhyme that uses the name Punchinello, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 161)
40 Timbs (1859: 52)
41 Collier (1832: 13)
42 Opie (1997: 444)
43 Halliwell (1846: 8)
44 Defoe (1719: 300)
45 Opie (1997: 27)
46 Ker (1837: 243)
47 Opie (1997: 26)
48 Ker (1837: 271-2)
49 Halliwell-Phillipps (1849: 10)
50 Thomas (1930: 214)
51 for the text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 160)
52 Thomas (1930: 52)
53 Opie (1997: 189)
54 Sykes (1833: 265)
55 Halliwell-Phillipps (1844: 173)
56 for the text of the ballad, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 247-8)
57 Opie (1997: 82)
58 Dowe (1794: 621)
59 Chambers (1829: 146-7)
60 Edmondstoune Aytoun (1859: 373)
61 Opie (1997: 82)
62 Curry (1833: 57-8)
63 for full text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 162)
64 Castleden (2000: 131)
65 Paterson (1847: 3)
66 Caradog (1774: 334)
67 Lee, M. H. (1876). Maelor Saesneg. Archaeologia Cambrensis, 7. 287-99. Quoted in: Castleden
(2000: 265)
68 Giles (1847: 283)
69 Smollett (1804: 175)
70 Castleden (2000: 29)
71 for full text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 162-39)
72 Williams (1852: 22)
73 Ford (2001)
74 Halliwell (1846: 46)
75 Foxe and Cumming (1844: 3)
76 Halliwell (1846: 82)
77 Opie (1997: 445)
78 Halliwell (1846: 6)
79 Opie (1997: 316) (for full text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 163)
80Gunpowder-Plot, or, A Brief Account of that bloudy and subtle Design laid against the King,
his lords and Commons in Parliament, and of a Happy Deliverance by Divine Power.(1605), see
Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 248-50)
81 Halliwell (1846: 7)
82 Opie (1997: 133)
83 Halliwell (1846: 7)
84 Opie (1997: 133)
85 Halliwell (1846: 10) (for full text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 164)
66
86 Halliwell (1846: 77) (for the answer to the riddle, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 164)
87 Opie (1997: 422)
88 Ashmead (1861: 16)
89 Opie (1997: 134) (for full version of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 164-5)
90 Halliwell (1846: 6)
91 Halliwell (1846: 8)
92 for full text of the song, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 250)
93 Halliwell (1846: 8)
94 to the best of the authors knowledge
95 Rackham (1994: 21)
96 for the texts of the rhymes, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 149, 166)
97 Willcox Smith (1914: 107)
98 Pro{i}-Santovac (2007: 427)
99 Curwin (1999: 241)
100 Pro{i}-Santovac (2007: 435)
101 Halsey (1911: 21)
102 Fisher Wright (1916)
103 Goldman (2005: 75)
104 Goldman (2005: 73)
105 Willcox Smith (1914: 76)
106 Gordon and Klass (1979: 53)
107 Kbler-Ross (1983: 200)
108 Goldman (2005: 73)
109 see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 177-8)
110 Kbler-Ross (1983: 6)
111 Willcox Smith (1914: 128)
112 Goldman (2005: 77)
113 Ashmead (1861: 10)
114 James (1999: 59)
115 Aldgate (2004: 186)
116 Aldgate (2004: 196)
117 Willcox Smith (1914: 123)
118 Cartwright (2003: 6)
119 Willcox Smith (1914: 115)
120 see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 179)
121 Johnson (1995: 37)
122 Willcox Smith (1914: 158)
123 Baring-Gould (1962: 319)
124 see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 184-5)
125 Bartsch (1995: 3)
126 Willcox Smith (1914: 89)
127 Archer (1999: 82)
128 Brody (1999: 26)
129 Salkind (2002: 135)
130 Willcox Smith (1914: 132)
131 Salkind (2002: 134-5)
132 Brody (1999: 28)
133 Archer (1999: 57)
134 Meekums (2002: 5)
135 Archer (1999: 58)
136 Fisher Wright (1916)
137 Adesman (2004: 70)
138 Adesman (2004: 69)
67
139 Willcox Smith (1914: 7)
140 Archer (1999: 62)
141 for the rhymes see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 186-7)
142 Archer (1999: 60)
143 Willcox Smith (1914: 93)
144 Willcox Smith (1914: 125)
145 for the rhymes see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 187-8)
146 Archer (1999: 90)
147 Brody (1999: 185)
148 Salkind (2002: 149)
149 Bradshaw (1999: 95)
150 Clarke-Stewart (2006: 111)
151 The English groat coined in 1351-2 was made equal to four pence. It ceased to be issued for
circulation in 1662. (Opie 97: 166).
152 Opie (1997: 166)
153 Clarke-Stewart (2006: 113)
154 Baring-Gould (1962: 228)
155 Salkind (2002: 124)
156 Clarke-Stewart (2006: 110-3)
157 Opie (1997: 192)
158 see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 189)
159 Opie (1997: 372)
160 Pro{i}-Santovac (2007: 427)
161 On the negative messages incorporated in some of Mother Goose rhymes, see Pro{i}-
Santovac (2007)
162 Wilburn (2000: 17)
163 Opie (1997: 57), as it appeared in Mother Gooses Melody (c.1765), letters J and V are missing.
164 Cameron (2001: 19)
165 Hale (1905: 13)
166 Fisher Wright (1916)
167 Greenaway (1901: 29)
168 for the text of the rhymes, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 190)
169 Carter (1998: 53)
170 An example of hierarchy: Superordinate: ANIMAL / Basic level: DOG / Subordinate:
SPANIEL (Cameron 2001:79-80)
171 Pussy-cat sits by the fire, mentioning a dog as well, As I went to Bonner, about a pig,
Goosey, goosey, gander, The cocks on the housetop blowing his horn, with the reference to
ducks, as well, Cushy cow, bonny, let down thy milk, As I was going to Derby all on a market-
day, about a ram, I have seen you, little mouse, A swarm of bees in May, Little Miss Muffet,
with a reference to a spider, Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home, Bat, bat, Come under my hat,
Snail, snail, come out of your hole and Swan, swan, over the sea. (for the text of the rhymes,
see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 190-2)
172 Tankersley (2003: 53)
173 Pro{i} (2006: 329)
174 Tankersley (2003: 67)
175 Browne (2001: 1-2)
176 Halliwell (1992: 4)
177 Scott (1990: 3)
178 Whitehead (2002: 7)
179 Browne (2001: 6)
180 NiteOwls Nursery Rhymes Coloring Pages (2001)
181 A recording can be downloaded from www.gutenberg.org (for the text of the story, see Pro{i}-
Santovac (2008a: 251-3)
68
182 Other stories in Mother Goose in Prose are: Sing a Song o Sixpence, The Story of Little Boy
Blue, Cat and the Fiddle, The Black Sheep, Old King Cole, Mistress Mary, The Wondrous Wise
Man, What Jack Horner Did, The Man in the Moon, The Jolly Miller, The Little Man and His
Little Gun, Little Bo-Peep, The Story of Tommy Tucker, Pussy-cat Mew, How the Beggars Came
to Town, Tom, the Pipers Son, Humpty Dumpty, The Woman Who Lived in a Shoe, Little Miss
Muffet, Three Wise Men of Gotham, Little Bun Rabbit
183 Scott (1990: 5)
184 Cameron (2001: 11)
185 Baum (1901)
186 Browne (2001: 10)
187 Pro{i}-Santovac (2009)
188 Browne (2001: 6)
189 The term emergent literacy refers to a period in a childs life between birth and when the child
can read and write at a conventional (approximately third-grade) level. (Tracey 2006: 79-89)
190 For a detailed table with features characterising these phases, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008aa: 115)
191 Whitehead (2002: 56)
192 Cameron (2001: 138)
193 Opie (1997: 5)
194 Tracey (2006: 91)
195 Messick (1998) (for the text of the rhymes, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 192-3)
196 Tracey (2006: 92)
197 Adapted and taken from: Our Mother Goose (1880)
198 Cameron (2001: 150)
199 for full text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 193)
200 Cameron (2001: 132-3)
201 Anderson (1999: 27)
202 Opie (1997: 425) (for full text of the rhyme, see Pro{i}-Santovac (2008a: 194)
203 The onset is always the consonant sound or consonant cluster sound at the beginning of the
syllable, and the rime is the vowel sound plus any consonant sounds that follow it. (Stainthorp
1999: 7)
204 Opie (1997: 180)
205 Adapted and taken from: Stainthorp (1999: 8)
206 Grant (2000: 35)
207 Fisher Wright (1916)
208 Baring-Gould (1962: 273)
209 Cameron (2001: 130)
210 Cameron (2001: 130)
211 Beck and Williams (2006: 32)
212 Cameron (2001: 142)
213 Pro{i}-Santovac (2009)
214 Elbow (2000: 291)
215 Whitehead (2002: 82)
216 Pro{i}-Santovac (2008b: 75)
69
70
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ed. ). London: Paul Chapman Publishing, Limited. Retrieved April
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74
75
8.
Index of first lines
A frog he would a-wooing go 21
A man went hunting at Reigate 39
A swarm of bees in May 68
A was an apple pie 60
As I was going by Charing Cross 32
As I was going to Derby all on a market-day 68
As I went to Bonner 68
Baby, baby, naughty baby 44
Bat, bat, Come under my hat 68
Bessy Bell and Mary Gray 26
Bobby Shafto 59
Brow brinky 44
Bye, Baby bunting 48
Cackle, cackle, Mother Goose 60
Carrion crow sat on an oak 11
Charley Barley 35
Charley loves good cake and ale 33
Cock Robin 38
Cushy cow, bonny, let down thy milk 68
Dance, little Baby, dance up high 43
Dance, Thumbkin, dance 43
Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy and Bess 35
Elsie Marley has grown so fine 26
Every lady in this land 62
Flour of England, fruit of Spain 30
For every evil under the sun 36
Georgie Porgie 35
Girls and boys come out to play 24
Goosey, goosey, gander 68
Great A, little a 61
Here am I, little jumping Joan 22
Here comes a poor woman from baby-land 22
Here sits the Lord Mayor 44
Heres A, B, and C 48
Heres Sulky Sue 40
Hickory Dickory Dock 54
Humpty Dumpty 15
Hush, baby, my doll, I pray you, dont cry 44
Hush, my baby, do not cry 46
Hush-a-bye, baby 44
I do not like thee, Doctor Fell 42
I have seen you, little mouse 68
I love you well, my little brother 40
I saw a fishpond all on fire 62
Ill tell my mother when I get home 45
King Charles the First walked and talked 32
Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home 68
Lavenders blue 49
Little Betty Blue 49
Little Bo Peep 16, 63
Little General Monk 33
Little Jack Horner 21, 25
Little Miss Muffet 15, 68
Little Tom Twig bought a fine bow and arrow 42
London Bridge is Falling Down 16
Mary had a little lamb 14
Mary, Mary, quite contrary 16, 56
Mistress Mary, quite contrary 30
Molly, my sister, and I fell out 40
Multiplication is vexation 10
My father died a month ago 46
My father he died, I cannot tell how 22
My mother and your mother 46
76
Nancy Dawson was so fine 26
Oh where, oh where has my little dog gone 13
Old Grimes is dead, that good old man 38
Old King Cole 28
Old Mother Hubbard 15
Out goes the rat 61
If I had a donkey 61
Please to remember 32
Poor old Robinson Crusoe 24
Punch and Judy 22
Purple, yellow, red, and green 33
Pussy cat sits by the fire 60, 68
Rain on the green grass 49
Ring a-ring o roses 43
Robin Hood, Robin Hood 18
Roses are red 49
Rowley Powley 35
See-saw, sack-a-day 34
Simple Simon 16
Sleep, baby, sleep 44
Snail, snail, come out of your hole 68
Solomon Grundy 37
Swan, swan, over the sea 68
Ten Little Injuns 13
The Butterflys Ball and the Grasshoppers Feast 14
The cocks on the housetop blowing his horn 68
The house that Jack built 15
The lion and the unicorn 31
The Man in the Moon looked out of the moon 44
The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe 16
The Queen of Hearts 15
The rose is red, the grass is green 31
The Spider and the Fly 14
There once were two cats of Kilkenny 40
There was a little girl, and she had a little curl 14
There was an old woman had three sons 37
There was an old woman, as Ive heard tell 41
77
This little pig went to market 43
Three children sliding on the ice 17
Three Little Kittens They Lost Their Mittens 13
Three Men in a Tub 16
Tom, Tom, the pipers son 39
Twinkle, twinkle, little star 44
Two legs sat upon three legs 25
Two little dicky birds 63
Wee Willie Winkie 13, 35
What is the rhyme for porringer 34
When good king Arthur ruled this land 29
Who comes here 17
William and Mary, George and Anne 34
78
79
9.
Rezime
Majka guska u ku}i i {koli
U
fokusu ove monografije nalaze se anglo-ameri~ke pesme za decu iz usmene
tradicije pod zajedni~kim nazivom Majka guska. Korpus ovih tradicionalnih
pesama je {arolik. Njega ~ine uspavanke, razbrajalice, brojalice, zagonetke,
ta{unaljke, brzalice, slovarice, besmislene pesme, poslovice, i druge. Uglavnom
su delo nepoznatog autora, sa retkim izuzecima, i u pro{losti su se prenosile s
kolena na koleno, dok se od XVIII veka pa nadalje sve vi{e javljaju i u pisanom
obliku, zabele`ene i sakupljene iz raznih izvora. Mo`emo ih na}i u velikim
zbirkama, ali mnogo ~e{}e u knjigama manjeg obima koje su umnogome i doprinele
njihovom o~uvanju.
Sam naziv pesama, Majka Guska, predmet je mnogih rasprava i naga|anja. Jedna
od pretpostavki jeste da poti~e iz Francuske, jer se u {tampi nije pojavio sve do
1697. godine, kada je objavljena knjiga [arla Peroa, Pri~e Majke Guske, gde naziv,
me|utim, nije bio vezan za de~je pesme nego za pri~e. Pretpostavlja se, tako|e, da
se naziv odnosi na neku od dve kraljice Francuske po imenu Berta, ili `enu Roberta
Drugog, ili majku Karla Velikog. Engleski nau~nici tvrde da se identitet Majke
Guske krije u dadilji koja je `ivela u Saseksu na po~etku XVIII veka, Marti Gu~,
dok ameri~ki nau~nici smatraju da se odnosi na Elizabet Foster Guz iz Bostona, ~iji
je zet Tomas Flit 1719. godine navodno objavio pesme koje je ona pevala unucima
u sada izgubljenoj zbirci pod nazivom De~ije pesme, ili melodije Majke Guske.
Me|utim, nijedna od ovih tvrdnji ne mo`e biti dokazana sa sigurno{}u.
U tre}em poglavlju se navode najpoznatiji ilustratori zbirki pesama Majke
guske, kao {to su Maksfild Pari{ (1870-1966), Volter Krejn (1845-1915), Randolf
Koldekot (1846-1886), Kejt Grinavej (1846-1901), Vilijam Volis Denslou (1856-
1915), D`esi Vilkoks Smit (1863-1935) i Artur Rakam (1867-1939). Nabrojani
su i potencijalni autori nekih od pesama, od kojih se za neke, kao {to je [ekspir,
ne mo`e tvrditi da su zaista to i bili, dok se za neke sa siguro{}u zna koje su
pesme napisali. Me|u ove poslednje spadaju Vilijam Miler (1810-1872), Elajza
Folen (1787-1860), Septimus Vinter (1826-1902), Henri Vadsvort Longfelou
(1807-1882), Vilijam Rosko (1782-1843), Sara D`ozefa Hejl (1788-1879) i Meri
Hovit (1799-1888).
Nadalje, ispituje se odnos pesama Majke guske i drugih dela, kako knji`evnih,
tako i onih koji pripadaju novijim medijima. Utvr|eno je da su pesme Majke
guske poslu`ile kao inspiracija piscima kao {to je L. Frenk Baum (1856-1919)
prilikom stvaranja sli~nih pesama pod nazivom Otac gusan (c.1900), ali i pri~a
u okviru zbirke Majka guska u prozi (c.1901), razvijenih na osnovu tema jedne
grupe pesama Majke guske. Teme pojedina~nih pesama se mogu na}i u delima
Luisa Kerola (1832-1898), na primer, u Alisi u Zemlji ~uda (1865), i Tajnom
vrtu (1911) Fransis Burnet (1849-1924). U kumulativnoj pesmi Ku}a koju je
izgradio D`ek, svoju inspiraciju je 1950. godine na{la pesnikinja Elizabet Bi{op,
kao i savremena spisateljica Rut Braun, za knjigu u slikama Svet koji je izgradio
D`ek (1991). Majka guska se preselila i na male ekrane 1933. godine, u crtanom
filmu Dejva Flaj{era Beti Bup: zemlja Majke guske. Zatim je usledilo nekoliko
sli~nih kratkometra`nih ekranizacija: Volt Diznijeva Majka guska ide u Holivud
(1938) i Istina o Majci guski (1957), kao i Pri~e Majke guske (1946) Reja
Harihauzena. Godine 1967. pojavio se prvi dugometra`ni crtani film @ila Basa,
^udan svet Majke guske, dok je 1990. godine snimljena teledrama Majka guska
peva i svira. Uvo|enjem ra~unara u svakodnevni `ivot, Majka guska je dobila
svoje mesto i u kompjuterskoj igrici Roberte Vilijams Zbrkana Majka guska.
S druge strane, Majka guska je svoju inspiraciju nalazila na razli~itim mestima,
nekada vrlo neo~ekivanim za pesme namenjene deci. Jedan od takvih primera jeste
jednostavno preuzimanje pesama o ljubavi i pijan~enju iz domena odraslih. Nije
neuobi~ajno ni pozajmljivanje delova balada aktuelnih u vreme kada su pesme
Majke guske nastajale. Naj~e{}e su to bile popularne balade {tampane za {ire
narodne mase, sa tematikom od lokalnog zna~aja, na primer, veliki po`ar u Londonu
i utapanje troje dece u reci, ali i legendarne balade, kao {to je balada o Robinu
Hudu. Ponekad su preuzimane ~ak i u celosti, uz male izmene, kao u slu~aju trinaest
strofa balade o udvaranju `apca mi{ici. Jo{ jedan izvor inspiracije bile su lutkarske
predstave tog vremena, a preuzimani su i delovi dijaloga iz predstava za narodne
mase koje su se bavile obi~ajima vezanim za sahranjivanje i smenu godi{njih doba.
Kona~no, i popularni romani, kao {to je roman Danijela Defoa (1661-1731) Robinzon
Kruso, pozajmljivali su glavne likove de~jim pesmama.
Osim fiktivnih likova, u pesmama Majke guske se pojavljuju i stvarne li~nosti
iz pro{losti. Nekada su to obi~ni ljudi iz naroda, kao {to su Elsi Marli i Nensi Doson,
u po~etku opevane u pesmi za odrasle, ili Besi Bel i Meri Grej, ovekove~ene u
baladi. Me|utim, mnogo ~e{}e su u pitanju aktuelne li~nosti sa politi~ke scene:
kraljevi, kraljice ili vojskovo|e. Ponekad su u pitanju legendarne li~nosti, kao u
slu~aju kralja Artura, gde se ne mo`e sa sigurno{}u potvrditi njegovo istorijsko
postojanje, ali i stvarni kraljevi i kraljice, kao {to su Meri Tjudor ili Meri I (1516-
1558), nazvana Krvava Meri, koja je vladala Engleskom od 1553. do 1558.
godine, njena polusestra i naslednica kraljica Elizabeta I (1558-1603), D`ejms VI
od [kotske (1566-1625), sin Elizabetine ro|ake Meri, {kotske kraljice, koji je
postao kralj D`ejms I od Engleske, naslediv{i Elizabetu, zatim njegov sin ^arls I
(1600-1649) kome je odrubljena glava 1649. godine i drugi. Vojne li~nosti koje
se pojavljuju u pesmama Majke guske su general D`ord` Mank (1608-1670) i
Oliver Kromvel (1599-1658), engleski general i vo|a parlamentarnih snaga u
Engleskom gra|anskom ratu, koji je, nakon pogubljenja ^arlsa I, proglasio Britaniju
republikom. Politi~ki doga|aji iz britanske istorije koji su ostali opevani u pesmama
Majke guske su ujedinjenje Engleske i [kotske pod vladavinom D`ejmsa I i Barutna
zavera, razotkriveni plan katolika da 5. novembra 1605. godine podignu u vazduh
njegov parlament. U monografiji se, me|utim, isti~e da se ne mo`e bezrezervno
tuma~iti svako ime na koje se u pesmama nai|e kao da pripada stvarnoj istorijskoj
li~nosti, iako su u pro{losti postojali poku{aji takvih tuma~enja.
^etvrto poglavlje bavi se vaspitnim uticajem ovih pesama na decu, u smislu
formiranja karaktera i vrednosnog sistema deteta, jer one, jednako kao i neposredne
pouke vaspita~a, svojim sadr`ajem prenose indirektne poruke mladom umu u
razvoju. Po{to prate decu od kolevke pa sve do {kolskih dana, njihov uticaj mo`e
biti zna~ajan. Lako se pamte i ostaju na raspolaganju u de~joj podsvesti, ~ak i
kasnije tokom `ivota. Prise}aju}i se njihovog teksta, deca istovremeno pokre}u
u svojoj svesti i nesvesno usvojene stavove izra`ene u sadr`aju ovih pesama.
Tako|e, u odnosu na direktne pouke, pesme prilago|ene de~jem uzrastu predstav-
ljaju mnogo suptilnije sredstvo otkrivanja postojanja `ivotnih te{ko}a, nego
80
prosto prola`enje kroz njih bez ikakve prethodne pripreme. Jo{ je gore od toga
navesti decu da veruju da se svet sastoji samo od dobrih stvari, {to neminovno
vodi dubokom razo~aranju, kako u `ivot, tako i u svoje najbli`e. Stoga, uvo|enje
realnosti u de~ije za{ti}ene `ivote predstavlja veoma va`an zadatak odraslih, a
pesme za decu mogu biti od velike pomo}i u tom procesu.
Jedna od najte`ih tema sa kojima se odrasli danas suo~avaju jeste predstavljanje
smrti kao prihvatljivog dela `ivota. Me|utim, nije oduvek bio slu~aj da se smrt
smatra tabu temom. Tokom proteklih vekova, zbog slabijeg poznavanja medicine,
stopa smrtnosti je bila mnogo vi{a, posebno me|u decom, te su ona svakodnevno
imala priliku da se susretnu sa smr}u svojih bli`njih. Tako su i pesme za decu, koje
su nastajale u to vreme, prihvatale smrt kao nimalo neuobi~ajenu temu. S druge
strane, moderno dru{tvo ne smatra smrt za temu prikladnu ~ak ni za ve}inu obi~nih
razgovora, a kamoli za de~iju poeziju, verovatno zbog toga {to razgovor o smrti
automatski pokre}e i bolno suo~avanje sa sopstvenom smrtno{}u. Stoga ljudi ~esto
koriste kli{ee, kao {to su oti{ao je na nebo ili na dug put, u poku{aju da izbegnu
direktno pominjanje. U razgovoru izme|u odraslih ovo ne predstavlja problem jer
su oni svesni zna~enja metafore, dok deca ~esto jezik shvataju bukvalno, te takvi
izrazi mogu da {tete procesu `aljenja i jo{ vi{e ote`aju razumevanje samog koncepta
smrti. Da bi se spre~ili nesporazumi, odrasli moraju da ohrabruju otvorenu
komunikaciju i u razgovoru sa decom koriste {to direktniji i jednostavniji jezik,
daju}i obja{njenja u skladu sa de~jim godinama. S obzirom na to da odrasli mogu
svesno ili podsvesno spre~avati decu da izraze svoja ose}anja usled svoje sopstvene
nesposobnosti da govore o smrti, pesme koje se bave prolazno{}u `ivota mogu biti
od neprocenjive vrednosti kao stimuli{u}i faktor za otpo~injanje razgovora i
ohrabrivanje dece da postave razli~ita pitanja koja ih mu~e.
Jo{ jedno pitanje koje je va`no u vaspitanju dece jeste razvijanje potrebe za
po{tovanjem granica i vlasni{tva, pri ~emu pesme Majke guske tako|e mogu
pomo}i. S obzirom na ~injenicu da su deca prirodno radoznala, ~esto nisu u
mogu}nosti da shvate mnoge zabrane koje im se postavljaju prilikom istra`ivanja
okoline, i mogu reagovati na njih rezignirano. Zbog toga ih treba strpljivo pou~avati,
jer se najve}i deo njihovog razvoja odvija u interakciji s drugim ljudima. Ovim
se mo`e pomo}i i deci sa problemima u pona{anju, kao {to je, na primer, nasilni~ko
pona{anje prema sadrugovima, ili kra|a njihovog vlasni{tva da bi se privukla
pa`nja na sebe. Tako|e, po{to su pred{kolske i {kolske ustanove mesta na kome
deca dolaze u kontakt sa ve}im brojem vr{njaka, ~esto po prvi put u `ivotu, mora
im se pomo}i da razre{e odre|ene probleme koje takva situacija donosi. Stoga je
va`no blagovremeno pripremiti decu za uslove u vrti}u i {koli i pou~iti ih kroz
igru i pesmu da su konflikti ne{to {to treba re{avati na vreme da bi se spre~io
nastanak novih konflikata, kao i razvoj nepo`eljnih osobina li~nosti.
U okviru ovog poglavlja razmatra se i mogu}a upotreba pesama u cilju pru`anja
pomo}i deci pri razvijanju ve{tine razumevanja i izra`avanja sopstvenih ose}anja.
Ovo poslednje je od izuzetne va`nosti, jer bez davanja do znanja drugima o tome
kako se ose}aju, deca ne mogu ni o~ekivati bilo kakvu pomo} u re{avanju svojih
problema. Skretanje posebne pa`nje deci na ovu problematiku putem pesama
dosta poma`e, posebno starateljima koji ni sami nisu stekli te ve{tine u dovoljnoj
meri, jer se ~esto emocionalnim aspektima ne poklanja jednako pa`nje kao drugim
aspektima razvoja deteta, kako u okviru {kole, tako i u okviru porodice.
Tako|e, rasvetljava se i potencijal pesama Majke guske da uti~u na kvalitet
odnosa u okviru porodice, u smislu stvaranja veze izme|u roditelja i dece, koja
se, suprotno popularnom uverenju, ne doga|a uvek trenutno, ve} mora da se
konstantno oja~ava i neguje, kao i bilo koji drugi odnos u `ivotu ~oveka. Tako
pesme koje slu`e za upoznavanje odre|enih delova tela, a pra}ene su razli~itim
zabavnim aktivnostima, predstavljaju dobrodo{lo i interesantno provedeno vreme,
81
ispunjeno kvalitetnom igrom. Istovremeno, one mogu poslu`iti stvaranju svesti
o odvojenosti deteta od drugih ljudi, te formiranju za~etka samosvesnosti. Razli~ite
uspavanke, osim {to poma`u prilikom smirivanja deteta, svojim ritmi~kim zvucima
podse}aju na uslove i pokrete koje je dete iskusilo dok se jo{ kao fetus nalazilo
u materici. Naravno, prilikom upotrebe ovih pesama, treba voditi ra~una o samom
tekstu uspavanke, te izbegavati one sa zastra{uju}im sadr`ajem jer one mogu
prouzrokovati razvoj razli~itih strahova.
Pesme Majke guske mogu se koristiti i u situacijama kada je jedan od roditelja
odsutan, na primer, usled razvoda kada je efikasna saradnja izme|u roditelja,
biv{ih supru`nika, i odr`avanje kontakta sa roditeljem koji vi{e ne `ivi u izvornom
doma}instvu veoma va`na za dete. Od samog po~etka, ono zaslu`uje da bude
detaljno upoznato sa situacijom, naravno, u skladu sa svojim mogu}nostima
razumevanja, jer, koliko god se ovo ~inilo o~igledno, istra`ivanja su pokazala
da deca ~esto ne znaju dovoljno o razvodu svojih roditelja, a ono {to znaju mo`e
da bude neadekvatno, zatra{uju}e i zbunjuju}e. Mnogi roditelji i sami ote`avaju
situaciju u poku{aju da za sebe privuku ljubav i pa`nju, trude}i se da okrenu dete
protiv onog drugog roditelja, pri ~emu se stvara frustracija i sindrom podeljene
lojalnosti. Zbog toga treba pomo}i deci da shvate da je dobro kada gaje pozitivna
ose}anja prema roditelju u drugom doma}instvu, podsticati razgovor o prijatnim
stvarima koje je dete tamo do`ivelo i, iznad svega, uticati na to da dete shvati
da nije znak nelojalnosti prema roditelju kod ku}e izra`avati ljubav prema vikend
roditelju. Redovno pominjanje drugog roditelja je od izuzetne va`nosti, makar
i samo kroz pesmu, jer bi, u suprotnom, to mogla postati tabu tema za dete i tako
ga spre~iti da izrazi svoja ose}anja, a samim tim i da dobije pomo} kako bi se
na adekvatan na~in izborilo sa njima. Ovo je jo{ va`nije u slu~aju smrti jednog
od roditelja, kada dete vi{e nema priliku da se fizi~ki sretne sa njim.
Peto poglavlje se bavi obrazovnom ulogom pesama Majke guske u nastavi
engleskog jezika na pred{kolskom i ranom {kolskom uzrastu. Potencijal ovih
pesama kao alatki u nastavi jezika otkriven je jo{ 1815. godine kada je objavljena
Knjiga pesama Tome Pal~i}a. Ona po~inje delom posve}enom u~enju jezika i
sledi moderne principe nastave, prate}i u~enje novih re~i vizuelnim stimulansima,
dok istovremeno daje nastavnicima detaljna uputstva u pogledu nastavne metode.
Danas, skoro dve stotine godina kasnije, usvajanje vokabulara posmatra se kao
mnogo kompleksniji proces koji zahteva razli~ite aktivnosti i mnogobrojne prilike
za interakciju sa novonau~enim re~ima. U ovom procesu, pesme za decu se najbolje
mogu iskoristiti ukoliko se primene nakon uvo|enja ciljnog vokabulara, tek po{to
je on dovoljno uve`ban, da se deca ne bi obeshrabrila, a aktivnost bila uzaludna.
Tako|e, motivacija za usvajanje novih re~i znatno se pove}ava ako su deca unapred
pripremljena za aktivnost koja sledi i znaju da }e im te re~i omogu}iti da razumeju
pesmu. Prilikom povezivanja pojmova u maternjem i engleskom jeziku mo`e
pomo}i dodatna strategija grupisanja re~i u leksi~ka polja, pri ~emu se mogu
koristiti pesme o `ivotinjama, bojama ili ~lanovima porodice.
Oboga}ivanje vokabulara je va`an deo u~enja jezika, jer je duboko isprepleten
sa sve ~etiri osnovne jezi~ke ve{tine. Kada se jednom nove re~i uvedu, treba ih
periodi~no reciklirati u vidu razli~itih aktivnosti, ~ime se istovremeno razvijaju
veze u okviru novog konteksta. Pesme za decu mogu slu`iti toj svrsi u razli~itim
fazama kognitivnog razvoja - prvo kroz slu{anje, pa putem usmenog ponavljanja,
zatim kroz prepoznavanje re~i u pisanom obliku i, kona~no, putem samog pisanja.
Kao i prilikom usvajanja maternjeg jezika, slu{anje i usmeno izra`avanje su
ve{tine koje se prve razvijaju prilikom u~enja stranog jezika u ranom detinjstvu.
S obzirom na ~injenicu da se glasovni sistemi razli~itih jezika obi~no ne podudaraju
u potpunosti po broju fonema i njihovom kvalitetu, deci se mora obezbediti {to
vi{e prilika za slu{anje ciljnog jezika. Snimljene pesme za decu, na primer, vredna
82
su pomo} u razvoju govornog jezika, jer su pra}ene primamljivim melodijama
koje pozivaju decu da se aktivno priklju~e pevanju. Me|utim, one se ne mogu
koristiti u izolaciji; njihovoj primeni mora da prethoditi detaljna priprema dece
u pogledu uvo|enja vokabulara i su{tine sadr`aja pesme. Da bi se lak{e povezale
re~i i njihovo zna~enje, ova aktivnost se mo`e propratiti pokretima i pokazivanjem
slika ili igranjem sa igra~kama koje predstavljaju objekte u pesmi. Deci se jo{
mo`e olak{ati i upotrebom gestikulacije, intonacije, kao i izraza lica da bi se
prenelo zna~enje paralelno sa usmenim obja{njenjima. Tako|e, koliko god to
delovalo o~igledno, mora se naglasiti da je neophodno deci pru`iti puno prilika
za samo usmeno izra`avanje, kao i obezbediti im adekvatne teme za razgovor
koje mogu biti izvedene iz prethodno poslu{anog materijala, na primer. Aktivnost
predstavljena u monografiji zasnovana je na ideji L. Frenka Bauma i njegovoj
knjizi Majka guska u prozi (1901), gde je on upotrebio nekoliko pesama Majke
guske da bi razvio detaljnije pri~e oko njihovih jednostavnih zapleta. Ovaj predlog
je ilustrovan na dva prakti~na primera modela ~asova, prvi predvi|en za rad s
decom pred{kolskog uzrasta, a drugi sa decom u ni`im razredima osnovne {kole.
^itanje i pisanje su obuhva}eni zajedni~kim pojmom pismenost, ~ime se
nagla{ava ~injenica da ove dve ve{tine predstavljaju dve strane istog nov~i}a, a
ne dve potpuno razli~ite aktivnosti. One su, tako|e, usko povezane i zasnovane
na de~joj usmenoj kompetenciji i njihovom nesvesnom o~ekivanju da pisani
jezik, kao i usmeni, sadr`i zna~enje, ima odre|enu strukturu i sastoji se od re~enica,
re~i i delova re~i. Treba napomenuti, me|utim, da tokom ranih faza u~enja
engleskog jezika, deci treba predstavljati isklju~ivo napisane re~i koje ona ve}
poznaju u usmenom obliku. Razli~ite teorije pismenosti nude veliku pomo} u
procesu organizovanja aktivnosti pri u~enju ~itanja i pisanja, a dati su i primeri
da ovo ilustruju.
S obzirom na to da su pesme Majke guske uobi~ajen sastojak raznih programa
za u~enje engleskog jezika i ~esto se mogu na}i u ud`benicima za pred{kolski i
rani {kolski uzrast, potrebno je da nastavnici koji ih upotrebljavaju budu {to bolje
upoznati sa njihovim razli~itim aspektima, kao i mogu}nostima za rad koje te
pesme nude. Od velike je va`nosti kriti~ki pristup ovim pesmama, kao i postojanje
svesti o pozitivnim i negativnim pedago{kim i psiholo{kim porukama, zbog
dalekose`nih posledica koje jednom usvojeno znanje i stavovi mogu imati na
`ivot deteta.
83
CIP - Katalogizacija u publikaciji
Narodna biblioteka Srbije, Beograd
821 . 111 . 09-93
PRO[I]-Santovac, Danijela, 1978-
Home and School Use of Mother Goose / Danijela Pro{i}-Santovac. -
Beograd : Zadu`bina Andrejevi}, 2009 (Beograd: Todra plus). - 83 str. :
ilustr. ; 24 cm. - (Edition Academia / [Zadu`bina Andrejevi}], ISSN
1450-653X; 230)
Tira` 500. - Notes: str. 65-69. -
Bibliografija: str. 70-74. - Registar. -
Rezime : Majka guska u ku}i i {koli
ISBN 978-86-7244-788-0
a) Engleska kwi`evnost za decu - Likovi - Majka Guska
COBISS . SR-ID 167955468