Have you noticed that nursery rhymes are nonsense?

Philippines
April 28, 2010 1:55am CST
Look at this : Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water, Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill went tumbling after. There are no wells uphill O.o Jack fell and Jill did not help him XD Next: Hey diddle, diddle. The cat and the fiddle. The cow jumped over the moon. The little dog laughed to see such sport and the dish ran away with the spoon. Why did the dish and spoon live-in? Now that is kinda wrong. I seriously think it is disturbing nonsense.
2 people like this
14 responses
@kedralynn (980)
• United States
28 Apr 10
Yes my boyfriend and I were just thinking about this last week. The rhymes sound so random and confusing. They're weird and not like something our kids needs to know. And yet I still remember a lot of nursery rhymes... But I don't know what they mean. We did find out this one tho cuz I was the most curious about it - "Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater had a wife and couldn't keep her. He put her in a pumpkin shell and there he kept her very well." Was she locked up in this shell? Did he feed her? Now according to wikipedia it used to be a much darker rhyme (Still Mother Goose) in the 1800s- "Peter, my neeper. Had a wife and couidna' keep her. He pat her i' the wa' and lat a' the mice eat her." Um what?! Why?! And huh?!
1 person likes this
• United States
28 Apr 10
I mean the darker rhyme was still part of the Mother Goose Collection. Not that it was called Mother Goose.
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
Thanks for sharing that other nursery rhyme. Wow these nursery rhymes sure are misleading, no wonder we have many crimes O.o Happy Mylotting :)
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
29 Apr 10
They have been around for generations and you are right...they don't make much sense. Kids just like to sing them. To a kid they are funny. Dr.Suess doesn't make much sense either but kids absolutely love him.
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
29 Apr 10
Yes, that's what I'm reading here. I'm wondering if they were like many of the fairy tales....meant originally for adults? This is actually a pretty interesting topic.
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
30 Apr 10
You are bringing back some memories sViswan. I remember when the wolf fell into the boiling pot of water. I still have a very old fairy tale book. Some of them were pretty violent when I look at them now and yet as a child, I really thought nothing of it. I didn't analyze them at all. They were just stories and I knew they weren't real. For me they were just entertaining little stories. I didn't read deep into them and think violence or anything. They were not in any way reality for me.
• Philippines
29 Apr 10
Apparently they do make sense. It is dangerous especially when you have your kids asking "why".
@SViswan (12051)
• India
28 Apr 10
Hmmm...you know what? These nursery rhymes might be seem like nonsense...but most of them have a story behind them. I can't remember right now...but there's a site which has the stories behind each of the rhymes. Jack and Jill is a long winded rhyme with a couple of stanzas that come after the one we learn at school. http://www.rhymes.org.uk/ Check out this website. I'm majoring in Psychology and I'm a kindergarten teacher too. Though we don't use these traditional rhymes at our school, I was interested in checking out how they originated.
• Philippines
29 Apr 10
I actually changed my mind that nursery rhymes are nonsense. I took Psychology for 3 years, enough for me to understand the meaning + I am currently a 4th year literature major. I have learned to connect these things to probable causes of violence and lewd behavior. I will use this topic as my thesis next year :) I will go check out the website. You do tend to freak out when you find the symbolisms too XD Good luck in teaching :) Thanks for the comment :)
@SViswan (12051)
• India
30 Apr 10
Oh yeah...you are so right about some of them being probable causes of unwanted behaviour!I've had questions from my kindergartners and my older son about how it was okay to bully (as per a rhyme). In today's context, where even little kids have more exposure to the media, they are able to relate these rhymes differently than how we interpreted them when we were little (well, I didn't bother with interpretation and the 'rhyming' was what was more important to me...lol) This is a great topic to do your thesis in...all the best!
• Philippines
30 Apr 10
I would think the cartoons have some contribution into that violence as well. I was thinking that would be another discussion of mine. I find a bit off topic already. I think we can keep this discussion to things we learn in school. Cartoons cannot be monitored by the teachers. 30-40 in a class and you expect the teacher to know all that LoL Thank you very much. This thesis topic in the top of my list as of yesterday. I really appreciate you participating in all of this :) I hope this can help give all of us a brighter tomorrow :)
@cupkitties (7421)
• United States
28 Apr 10
Actually Jill had been hurt herself "and Jill went tumbling after" Tumble is the same as fall. She was probably running to assist her brother when she tripped. Those were all meant simply for entertainment and things were a lot different then back when the author came out with them. IF you want disturbing try and see if you can find the original versions of the fairy tales. Shoving Snow Whites wicked step mother off a cliff was much more humane than the torment she suffers in the first version.
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
29 Apr 10
Yes, the original fairy tales were unbelievable. They were originally intended for adults as a form of entertainment.
• Philippines
29 Apr 10
Fairy tales planned for adults O.o Ok, I can swallow that after a few more bites. It is just that, you know we have epics to do that. Agamemnon, Odyssey, Oedipus those are older. They are from the ancients. I think it is just strange for adults to need heroes. I would like to think they would be after romance maybe, reality and the like. Science fiction, I believe was just considered "witch craft". Thanks for commenting :)
@angelajoy (1825)
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
I don't think there's anything wrong with nursery rhymes even though they are nonsensical. They're supposed to be like that. They were made for kids to have fun, so they don't have to have a deep meaning because the kids wouldn't understand them yet. It's not wrong to enjoy a little bit of nonsense every once in a while. If we would always find sense in things, our life would be too serious. I don't want to live like that. I want to have fun. I want to laugh at stupid things. Yes, it's important to think deep, but I feel like I need to have a break from that sometimes.
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
29 Apr 10
Joe, These nursery rhymes are not part of some big brainwashing plan for our kids. They have been around for generations and seriously, I don't see that they did anything to promote any of the horrible things you say. Sorry that just seems a little bit far fetched don't you think?
• Philippines
29 Apr 10
@sid Far fetched? No, it actually is very related. You are aware that childhood memories are stored in the subconscious. Have you ever wondered why we have some fears of height or maybe even clowns? Childhood memories. That is why these things are a serious matter.
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
They're merely stories for children so They're nonsense. But why would you waste your time analysing nursery rhymes?
@sid556 (30960)
• United States
29 Apr 10
I am thinking that it could be like many of the fairy tales. Back in the day before tv and radio, adults would sit around and talk. Many times the children would sneak and listen to them . The adults realizing this changed the story to sound like a kids story when really it was not.
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
On the contrary, they do make sense when you look deep into them. These nursery rhymes tell kids about what life is about. So, early on, we know a little what real life actually is, it is just that it was made to sound like a bunch of jumbled poetry. I am a literature major, I tend to analyze almost everything. Very amazing stuff :) Happy MyLotting :)
• Philippines
29 Apr 10
So you suggest it is a failed attempt of a cover up O.o I don't think it was like that. It doesn't make sense because there are rhymes in these. Not everybody can create a poem, up to this day. To make something that catchy requires a great deal of talent. Thanks for your opinion. :)
@coolcrux1 (141)
• India
28 Apr 10
I never thought and still don't think that nursery rhymes are nonsense. This thing are for kids so that they find them interesting and easy to remember, because they are not very usual.
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
The funny thing is that as this discussion continues, more and more convinced that there is actually a deeper meaning that we adults don't seem to notice. Happy Mylotting :)
• Philippines
29 Apr 10
Yes, I sometimes think about nursery rhymes being nonsense. I sometimes don't understand what they mean and what they are for.
@redhotpogo (4401)
• United States
29 Apr 10
Nursery rhymes usually have meaning to them. They're like a coded journal entry. They tell about something that happened to someone, or have a lesson to teach. You just have to decipher it. Hey diddle diddle (sound of music) the cat and the fiddle (cat would be slang for a guy; like dog,dude,etc) the cow jumped over the moon (cows can't jump over moons, so this would mean something impossible. "When pigs fly") The little dog laughed to see such a sport (little dog= young man) and the dish ran away with the spoon (dish is what you call someone of importance, someone that gets noticed, usually a beautiful girl. she's a dish. A spoon could mean someone unknown, not noticed, unpopular. A spoon isn't often used to eat with, usually its a fork we use.) So you have a guy playing the fiddle, a young man is laughing at him, and a girl is running away with someone. If you're running away you have to be running away from someone or something, so I'm guessing the young man is with the girl, and he's laughing at the fiddler, because he thinks he's better than him, and his girl thinks he's mean, so she leaves him for the fiddler. Lesson you don't need to impress everyone, just the one person who will be with you, and love you for who you are.
• Philippines
30 Apr 10
Thanks you for giving another interpretation to this ever so interesting rhyme. I believe that you are one of the few people who actually may be thinking in the same wave length as me. :) Happy Mylotting :)
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
There are some that are non sense but kids would not mind anyway. As long as it makes kids sing to it then I guess that's okay. it's up for them to figure out what the rhymes are for and what it really means.
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
The funny thing is that these nursery rhymes tell kids what life actually is about. It is very amusing actually. Thanks for commenting :) Happy Mylotting :)
@Jotomy (6322)
• India
29 Apr 10
I feel kindergarten rhymes for making children cheerful and active may be there is no meaning in some of the rhymes but for uttering will be good as like songs this may help children to improve their talk. It is good oral exercise for them. Teachers will be giving sign to a particular words so that children can understand the words and repeat and thats how they learn.
• Philippines
30 Apr 10
That was one obvious purpose about teaching these. Thanks for sharing though :)
• United States
28 Apr 10
it doesnt matter, it just has to rhyme, kids don't care
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
I don't think you realize the effects of these rhymes, tyler. Do you know that these kids store these rhymes as we see them recite it. It is a low form of hypnotism. These things could be the reason behind all this destruction and quarrel we have now. The kids won't care naturally, it isn't important to them. I hope you look at the bigger picture next time :)
@mjanakha (479)
• United Arab Emirates
28 Apr 10
Hi Joe You seem to consider the nursery rhymes in a different way. This is because you are grown up. As you are researching you have developed a habit of questioning also? Its good. Then whats your idea about the cartoons. Animals, trees, birds all talking in human language. What about the humans coming in different shapes in comics. Whatever happens to Tom(Tom and jerry)he will be back again in the same shape and will be back of jerry. All these things you think it as rubbish. Have you seen any children questioning as you do? Probably the answer is no. Psychology of children is different. They just take the words from the rhymes. and sing it. Music has a great power to penetrate into the mind. Children should not be bored with the introduction of new words and new ideas. Thats why the rhymes have been introduced. As like there are no questions in the short stories about the logic, here also no logic is being noticed. So a cow can jump over the moon, dish can run away with the spoon. Hope you understand.
• Philippines
30 Apr 10
Well it's true I am taking nursery rhymes into a whole new level. Questioning is part of my personality, I easily get curious about things. I think cartoons were made to entertain kids. Created because the kids want to watch something too :) Well, mjanakha, there are laws in the cartoon world but, that is another topic I think unless you want me to relate it to nursery rhymes. My brother questions these things and he is 6 years old. I you have read earlier comments, I have affirmed the rhymes having loads of story/sense behind them. Well, mjanakha people learn in different ways: Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic. Kids learn these things because of association. As far as it concerns me, I think we will have a more peaceful society if something is done. Thanks for commenting :)
• India
28 Apr 10
hello friend why are u listening to nursey rhymes at this age 1please can you tell me but you are right nursery rhymes are somewhat nonsense jack and jill went up the hill ot fetch a pail of water i cant understand what was the need to go to the mountain they are telling it so happilyyyyyyyyy
• Philippines
28 Apr 10
You hear kids play everyday and I just happened to notice it while passing by the neighborhood. 1st of all it was a hill. I think this is a reality we teach kids that life is about working together :)