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CHILDREN'S 
FOLKLORE 
REVIEW 

VOLUME 26 
2003-2004 

PUBLISHED BY THE  
CHILDREN'S FOLKLORE SECTION OF THE AMERICAN FOLKLORE 
SOCIETY WITH SUPPORT FROM THE ENGLISH DEPARTMENT AT 

EAST CAROLINA UNIVERSITY 



 

CONTENTS 

FROM THE EDITOR ....................................................................... 5 

2003 NEWELL PRIZE WINNER: GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAY-
GROUND RHYMES OF NEW ZEALAND CHILDREN: 1993-2003. 
 JANICE ACKERLEY .................................................................... 7 

2003 NEWELL PRIZE HONORABLE MENTION: THE UGLY 
DUCKLING, HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN: A STORY OF 
TRANSFORMATION 
 ANITA L. GAMBOS ................................................................... 63 

FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE: How CULTURAL IDENTITY IS CON-
STRUCTED THROUGH IRISH AND IRISH AMERICAN CHILDREN'S 
LITERATURE 
 KAREN HILL McNAMARA ....................................................... 77 

REVIEW ROUNDUP 2003 
 GAIL DE VOS AND MERLE HARRIS ....................................... 91 

CFS: 2003 ANNUAL MEETING ............................................................ 101 

NOTES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS ....................................................... 104 

ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS............................................................. 105 



 

FROM THE EDITOR 

At this time last year, I was rushing to finish the text for the 25th anni-
versary Children's Folklore Review so that I could spend March, April, 
and May researching in Australia. I did, had a great time, and mailed out 
CFR 25 after I returned. I had thought that this year's CFR would come 
together in a more relaxed environment. However, at this point, Laurie 
and I are rushing to get CFR "mocked up" so that the printer can send a 
bill to the English Department before March 28th; otherwise, the money 
promised to us will be sent back to the state on that date. If it isn't one 
thing. . . . 

Speaking of funds and publication, the sharp-eyed readers among 
you will note that the cover of this volume says only "Volume 26"—no 
issue number. That's because the Children's Folklore Section voted at its 
annual meeting (see "CFS" 2003 Annual Meeting") to go to a one 
volume per year publication schedule. There are two reasons for this. 
First, we will get "more bang for the bucks" this way, publishing more 
pages of text in one volume that we would have been able to do in two, 
all other things being equal. Second, we believe the single volume, with 
its squared back, is a more aesthetically pleasing product. 

That said, I think we have another fine volume on our hands. Janice 
Ackerley's massive 2003 Newell Prize winning paper, "Gender Issues in 
the Playground Rhymes of New Zealand Children: 1993-2003," leads off 
the volume, and for the first time, we have a Newell Prize Honorable 
Mention, Anita L. Gambos' "The Ugly Duckling, Hans Christian 
Andersen: A Story of Transformation." These two are followed by a 
paper I heard at the 2003 American Conference for Irish Studies Mid-
Atlantic Regional Meeting at the University of Maryland, "From Fairies 
to Famine: How Cultural Identity is Constructed through Irish and Irish 
American Children's Literature," by Karen Hill McNamara. 

The volume concludes with a "Review Roundup: 2003" by CFR 
Book Review Editor Gail de Vos and her colleague, Merle Harris, the 
Minutes of the 2003 Annual Meeting of the Children's Folklore Section, 
the usual Notes and Announcements, and About the Contributors. 

As always, send your articles to CFR, tell your libraries to sub-
scribe (still the best deal among academic journals at $10.00/year for 
USA libraries and $15.00 for non-USA libraries), and see you in Salt 
Lake City in October. 

C.W. Sullivan III 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES OF 
NEW ZEALAND CHILDREN: 1993-2003 

AN ANALYSIS OF THE GENDER ISSUES EMBEDDED 
WITHIN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES OF NEW ZEALAND 

CHILDREN 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

ABSTRACT 

This research investigated the gender issues embedded within the play-
ground rhymes used by New Zealand school children over the last ten 
years. Comparisons were also made between these present-day rhymes 
and those from historical collections. 

An inductive approach based on grounded theory was used and 
identified four main classification groupings related to gender: 

l. 
2. 

gender based stereotypes, 
power within both peer groupings and in relation to authority fig-
ures, 
taboo issues including sexual knowledge and references to natural 
bodily functions and parts, 
life passages, both traditional and modem day. 

3. 

4. 

Close analysis and interpretation of the rhymes revealed key 
themes. Links were formed between these themes and current social 
trends and attitudes. The rhymes used by children were shown to contain 
hidden transcripts that related to culturally constructed gender issues. At 
the same time this research presents evidence that important traditional 
elements of these rhymes were still maintained. 

The findings of this research project give insight into the often-
subversive world of children's playground culture. The duality of chil-
dren's playground rhymes was confirmed by this study. Children's 
playground rhymes are contemporary as well as traditional, innovative 
and conservative, improvised and inherited. Children preserve the tradi-
tions of the past while still managing to adapt their rhymes to reflect 
concerns of the present. 

CHAPTER ONE 
Introduction 
Background 

This researcher has been involved in many different levels of edu-
cation over the last 30 years, including preschool, primary school, high 

7 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

school and adult teaching. The interest in children's folklore, and play-
ground rhymes in particular, arose from work as a student, followed by 
employment as tutor and course director of one of the compulsory pa-
pers of the Christchurch College of Education's National Diploma in 
Children's Literature (NZ). The Patterns of Language paper contains a 
section on children's folklore and involves students in the collection of 
children's playground rhymes. 

Research Questions 
• What evidence is there of gender related issues in playground 
 rhymes used by New Zealand children in the period of 1993- 
 2003? 
• What comparisons, in relation to gender issues, can be made  

between current rhymes and past collections? 

Rationale 
The close examination of the folk rhymes of New Zealand children 

gives an insight into their culture, a world not readily accessible to the 
casual adult observer. The contention that in this highly media and 
technological focussed age children have lost the art of playing has been 
disproved by studies of several researchers (Factor, 1988; Sutton-Smith, 
1999; Bishop & Curtis, 2001; Kelsey, 2001). After the initial 
assumption by the Opies (1959) "that children no longer cherished their 
traditional lore" (5) they concluded their study of 5000 United Kingdom 
school children with the finding that 

the modern schoolchild, when out of sight and on his own, ap-
pears to be rich in language, well-versed in custom, a respecter 
of details of his own code, and a practising authority on tradi-
tional self-amusements. (9) 

Recognition of gender issues, such as gender segregation in play 
and the identification of different play styles have been the focus of 
research studies, (Factor, 1988;. Thorne, 1993; Sutton-Smith, 1999; 
Hughes, 1999). Also consideration of gender issues within the rhymes 
themselves have been examined to some extent (McMahon & Sutton-
Smith, 1999; Grugeon, 2001; Arleo, 2001). 

Analysis and interpretation of the rhymes will establish links be-
tween the gender issues contained within the rhymes and the wider 
society in which they exist. These issues are both culturally constructed 
and are part of the subversive nature of playground rhymes (Grugeon, 
1993). The links between tradition and modernity that exist will also be 
examined with referral to folklore collections of the past. 

8 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

Children play for fun. In the process of play, particularly rule-
governed play, children learn and practise skills and test them-
selves physically, socially and intellectually. The traditional 
games of the schoolground are as important to children's de-
velopment as formal lessons in the classroom (Factor, 1983, 
108). 

Children's play traditions often reveal dimensions of creativity, 
artistry and complexity in their own right, including carni-
valesque, subversive and parodic elements as well as norma-
tive ones. (Bishop and Curtis, 2001, 8) 

To appreciate the value and importance of children's folklore, adults 
need to surpass what Sutton-Smith refers to as the "triviality barrier" 
(1970) in which the non serious is not necessarily deemed as 
unimportant. 

The infant appears to babble for the joy of hearing himself. The 
child plays for the fun of it. The adults return addictively to 
their games for the enjoyments they find contained within 
them. We are saying, that is, that childlore deals not only with a 
definite series of expressive forms that can be traced throughout 
human development, but that these forms are normally, in some 
sense, self-motivating structures. Which is after all only what 
generations of humanists have been saying when they have 
claimed that poetry, drama and other forms of human 
expression have their own intrinsic vocabulary and system of 
internal dynamics which must be understood in their own right 
before it is possible to study how they can be put to the service 
of this or that functional end. .. It is true, then, that childlore 
deals with behaviour that has traditionally been regarded as 
nonserious, but as this behaviour appears to be a systematic part 
of the human repertoire, to think, therefore, it is unimportant 
might be a mistake. (Sutton-Smith, cited in Bishop & Curtis, 
2001, 7) 

With the recognised move of children's folklore play from the 
physical to the more symbolic and verbal (McMahon & Sutton-Smith, 
1999), this researcher believes that it is important to take a more inter-
pretative approach with collections of children's playground rhymes, in 
terms of looking beyond the surface of the text. This move from the 
physical to the verbal can be clearly seen when comparing the collec-
tions by Knapp & Knapp (1976) and Bronner (1988) with the earlier 
collections of Newell (1883) and Gomme (1894). The nineteenth century 
collections contain relatively little mention of purely verbal play, 

9 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLA YGROUND RHYMES 

whilst the later collections have over half the examples given related to 
verbal or symbolic folklore. 

This researcher believes that it is important to go beyond the col-
lection of playground rhymes and to interrogate the text, in this instance 
looking for issues related to gender. McMahon and Sutton-Smith (1999) 
recognised and encouraged a trend towards interpretative research and 
observation of context, both "historical and situational" (306). This 
researcher will use a similar approach using a combination of historical 
and present-day collections. 

CHAPTER TWO 
Literature Review 

Before considering literature related to the gender issues within 
playground rhymes, it is necessary to define more precisely the terms 
such as "children's folklore," "playground rhymes" and "gender issues" 
used in this study, and also to make a distinction between nursery 
rhymes and playground rhymes. This literature review will then move to 
examine historical influences and the research related to gender issues 
within the playground and within the rhymes themselves. 

Defining the Key Terms . Children's Folklore 
According to Bishop and Curtis (2001), the term folklore was first 

used by William Thoms, writing under the pseudonym of Ambrose 
Merton, in 1846. It referred to the lore of the people and included the 
traditions of childhood. 

The recognition of childlore resulted in collections and research by 
the likes of Gomme (1894-98), Sutton-Smith (1959), the Opies (1959), 
Turner, (1969) and Knapp (1976). The items of childlore collected 
were regarded as folkloric because they were passed on by word of 
mouth and involved informal "watching, listening and copying of oth-
ers." (Bishop & Curtis, 2001, 5) 

The traditional formalised play activities of children, including 
forms of speech play and verbal art, that are engaged in and 
maintained by children themselves, within the peer group. 
Familiar genres of children's folklore include riddles, games, 
jokes, taunts, retorts, hand-claps, counting-out rhymes, catches, 
ring plays and jump-rope rhymes. It is likewise distinguished 
from, though it may share items and genres and have other 
continuities with, adult folklore. (Bauman, cited in Sutton-
Smith, 1999, 172) 

10 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

Folklore can also include such diverse activities as pranks, fortune 
telling, secret languages, tall stories, tongue twisters and superstitions. 
(Opie, 1959) 

Folklore may be "contemporary as well as traditional, improvised as 
well as inherited" (Factor, 1988, 8), also innovative and conservative, 
variable and constrained. (Zumwalt, 1999) 

. Playground Rhymes 
 A vital and vibrant component of children's folklore is the rhymes 
that children use in the playground. 

Play rhymes are the rhymes which children use for their 
games-for skipping, hand-clapping, ball-bouncing, chasing 
games, for deciding who is to be 'he,' or to establish suprem-
acy, to defend themselves, to express their affection or anger, 
or simply to amuse themselves and one another. (Turner et al, 
1978, vii) 

Children's traditional culture is an expression of their own be-
liefs and values, not isolated from contact with the adult world, 
but specific to themselves. Rhymes and other linguistic play 
are created and reproduced for children's own purposes, not for 
those of folklorists, the educational system or publishers. . . . 
Children create and pass on their rhymes for their own 
enjoyment as they play. They are a living, active art, made by 
children for their own purposes, their content to be taken in at 
the children's own level, and that is how they are best under-
stood. (Boyes, cited in Bishop & Curtis, 2001, 8) 

Playground rhymes need to be distinguished from nursery rhymes. 
The Opies (I959) noted not only a difference in cadence and subject 
matter, but also in the mode of transmission. 

While the nursery rhymes passes from a mother to another 
adult to the small child on her knee, the school rhyme circu-
lates simply from child to child, usually outside the home, and 
beyond the influence of the family circle. By its nature a nurs-
ery rhyme is a jingle preserved and propagated not by children 
but by adults, and in this sense it is an "adult" rhyme. It is a 
rhyme which is adult approved. The school child's verses are 
not intended for adult ears. (Opie, 1959,21) 

11 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

. Gender Issues 
Ivy (1994) distinguishes sex from gender by considering that sex is 

biologically determined and consists of the biological and physical 
characteristics that make us male and female. Gender, however, is more 
wide ranging, and includes psychological and emotional characteristics, 
as well as personality, attitudes, beliefs and values. Gender is culturally 
constructed as opposed to being biologically determined. 

Thorne (1993) sees gender as a highly visible source of individual 
and social identity. Gender refers to "cultural and social phenomena-
divisions of labour, activity and identity which are associated with but 
not fully determined by biological sex." (Thorne, 1986, I) 

Gender is not a unitary, or 'natural' fact, but takes shape in 
concrete, historically changing social relationships. (Thorne et 
al., cited in Ivy, 1994, 7)  

According to Ivy (1994), children learn gender-related behaviours 
from their social contacts with their peers, parents and other adults, and 
they model the actions, thoughts and emotions as they see them. Re-
flections of these observations can be seen in the text of some of the 
rhymes they use in the playground. 

Introduction 
Children's folklore, under examination here, focuses on the rhymes, 

chants, insults, taunts, rituals, riddles and parodies that are part of the 
folkloric traditions of children's play. This type of play has been 
classified as "verbal play" (Bishop & Curtis, 200 I, 13), as opposed to 
physical play and imaginative play. 

Much of this verbal play contains hidden transcripts or underlying 
issues that are perhaps not immediately obvious as children struggle for 
mastery and autonomy as a subordinate group. According to Grugeon 
(1993) playground rhymes form part of a subversive counter culture that 
occupies a different domain from the official school culture. It is the 
purpose of this literature review and following my research to consider 
what these hidden transcripts involve, in particular those related to 
gender issues. 

Every subordinate group creates, out of its ordeal, a "hidden 
transcript" that represents a critique of power spoken behind 
the back of the dominant. (McMahon, cited in Sutton-Smith, 
1997, 115) 

While the age range of the children most involved in verbal play fits 
into the area known as middle childhood, "the period between early 
childhood and puberty" (Factor, 1988, 5), the rhymes associated with 

12 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

games "belong almost exclusively to the eight to thirteen-year-old group" 
(Turner et al, 1978, 158). However rhymes of the playground, classified 
by Turner (1978) as "For Amusement Only" (158), cover a greater age 
range, extending from five to sixteen years. This section includes 
parodies as well as the more obscene playground rhymes. Primary school 
playgrounds are the focus of much of this activity, as "playgrounds 
themselves may be the only school setting in which spontaneous peer 
interactions are condoned." (Borman, 1979,251) 

Historical Background 
As the origins of folklore are firmly grounded in tradition it is im-

portant to consider features of the past that may have influenced the folk 
play of children today. Folklore provides "a link with the past but also a 
vibrant force in the present" (Sutton-Smith, 1999,27). 

During the Middle Ages singing games were part of a courtship 
ritual for intending partners. By the 1800s these same games had de-
veloped into fantasies of marriage, "games of unsophisticated girls who 
could make their choices among other girls largely without the presence 
of boys at all" (McMahon & Sutton-Smith, 1999, 294). Apart from these 
singing games, boys were involved in a greater variety of traditional 
game pursuits than girls (Sutton-Smith, 1981). This is an historical 
reversal, as today it is the girls who are the chief preservers and initiators 
of folklore (Sutton-Smith, 1999). 

Lady Gomme (1898) identified gender distinctions that divided the 
play traditions of children into dramatic play, being the property of girls, 
and competitive play, the property of boys (Turner, 1969). Sutton-Smith 
relates this to a significant factor "that girls acquire a consciousness of 
their future roles earlier than do boys, and that many girls' games act out 
these roles" (Sutton-Smith, 1959, 53-54). This consciousness was 
reflected in the language of the rhymes. 

In the early 1900s girls, given greater freedom in terms of dress, 
footwear and in the playground, as well as being unchallenged by or-
ganised sports, became the chief participants in, and preservers of folk-
lore (Turner, 1969; Sutton-Smith, 1981; Grugeon, 1988; Carpenter, 
2001). The change also included a movement from static singing games 
to the more physical skipping, hand clapping, handstand and ball 
bouncing games for girls. These aerobic games were most often ac-
companied by rhymes. This resurgence of rhymes, from only two or 
three rhymes in 1900 to over fifty skipping rhymes identified in the 
1950s (Sutton-Smith, 1981) is partly attributed to the fact that many 
were now being published in children's magazines and annuals. 

The general trend away from the physical aspects of folklore play 
to the more verbal is a result of a number of factors. In a move away 
from the freedom of the 1950s 1960s, restrictions on children's play and 
free time increased during the 1970s through to current times. 

13 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

These restrictions can be attributed to a number of factors, including 
safety issues, increased academic emphasis and an increase in the adult 
direction of organised sports and after school activities. 

The shift from physical to verbal play may reflect not only the 
general cultural changes in the world of adult work, from 
manual to symbolic, but also changes in the actual freedom 
that children have to carry out their older traditions of play. 
(McMahon & Sutton-Smith, 1999,299) 

Commercial influences, in terms of modern entertainment and rec-
reation, have also impacted and resulted in a shift from physical to ver-
bal play (Sutton-Smith, 1981). "Perhaps current childhood does indeed 
occupy more verbal crevices and less obvious physical space than used 
to be the case." (McMahon & Sutton-Smith, 1999) 

These changing trends can be seen when examining folklore col-
lections of the past. The early collectors were more interested in the 
continuity of traditions than in looking for any variation or change. 
"They believed that the games and verbal lore of childhood were relics 
of adult traditions fallen into disrepair-fallen into the nursery, where they 
were taken up and tenaciously maintained" (Factor, 1988, 11). 
Lady Gomme (1894) remarked, 

Children do not invent, but they imitate or mimic very largely, 
and in many of these games we have, there is little doubt, 
unconscious folk-dramas of events and customs which were at 
one time being enacted as a part of the serious concerns of life 
before the eyes of children many generations ago. (Gomme 
cited in Factor, 1988, 12) 

Children's playground rhymes today are both creative and conser-
vative and incorporate references to cultural influences into their 
rhymes. 

Gender issues within the playground today. 
Recent folklore researchers have recognised that, although essen-

tially traditional, many of the folklore rhymes of recent times are based 
on dualisms that link the past with the present, tradition with modernity. 
This influence beyond the traditional is reflected in the comment by 
McMahon & Sutton-Smith, "Children's folklore appears in many games 
to have taken on the character of modern mass-media culture, with its 
cycles of fashion and popularity" (McMahon & Sutton-Smith, 
1999,294). 

14 



 

15 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

. Gender Segregation 
Gender differences can be readily observed in any school play-

ground. Historical segregation of play areas still has repercussions in the 
playgrounds of today and impacts on gender issues within the play-
ground. Researchers have found that when given a choice of play asso-
ciates, children still choose same sex groupings (Borman, 1979; Factor, 
1988; Thorne, 1993; Boyatzis, 1999). Studies have shown that this same 
sex preference increases with age (Martin et al, 1999). Peer interactions 
are segregated from as young as three years of age, and increase through 
to eleven years (Maccoby, 1990). Other studies have shown that greater 
sex integration occurs away from the school playground, in home and 
community environments (Thorne, 1993). Mixed gender play has also 
been found to occur more in schools with a wide social intake or in 
schools with children from more professional homes (Kelsey, 2001). 
Integration is more likely to occur with adult intervention or when adults 
give attention to gender equity (Zhumkhawala, 1997; Maccoby, 1990; 
Jaffe, 1998). 

. Different Play Styles 
There is an extensive body of literature available describing the 

gender differences in the play styles of boys and girls (Factor, 1988; 
Sutton-Smith, 1999; Hughes, 1999; Boyatzis, 1999). These differences 
are attributed to social, cultural and possibly biological factors. Mechling 
(2000) recognises the "complex dance between biology and culture in 
children's lives." Feminism expounds the view that all gender is a social 
construction (Thorne, 1993), however there are biological differences 
that can't be dismissed, based on "different bodies" (Mechling, 2000, 1). 

Thorne (1993) expressed objections to the different culture model, 
in that it "implied that girls and boys are always apart" (90), and did not 
take into account the cross gender interactions that occur both in and out 
of school. Also she noted that this model "embeds the experiences of 
dominants and marginalises many other groups and individuals" (90). 

Research has produced evidence of these gender-related differences. 
Considering first the social purposes of play, Sutton-Smith (1997) saw 
inclusion and exclusion as power tactics that differentiate girls from 
boys. "The most important thing about play is to be included and not 
excluded from the group's activities. Much of female play is about the 
play of exclusion" (103). Similarly, James (1993), in her studies of play 
in Great Britain, noted the importance for both sexes of developing play 
skills to avoid being seen as an outsider or different. "For boys this 
means manipulating the important signifiers of masculinity—'toughness' 
and 'physical prowess'—in the process of play; for 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

girls it means demonstrating through play the nurturing skills of wives, 
mothers and managers" (198). 

Differences in play styles show boys to be more physical, more ac-
tive and more involved in rough and tumble play than girls (Thorne, 
1993; Lewis & Phillipsen, 1998; Butcher, 1999; Vissel, 1993). Girls 
"tend to participate in sedentary games or activities and spend much of 
their time in socialising activities" (Butcher, 1999, 249) and from Esto-
nian folklorist, Anu Vissel (1993), "Girls like those games that serve to 
set off and cultivate deftness, lightness and grace of movement" (1). 

These differences are correspondingly reflected in use of playground 
space. In the 1980s Grugeon's (2001) research observed "girls seem to be 
marginalised on the edges of the playground as boys monopolised the 
centre space to play football" (101). She noted that since then schools 
have made some effort to make playground space more accessible to all. 
Similar observations were made by Lindsay & Palmer (1981) and Thorne 
(1993). The former found that it was the younger girls especially who 
stayed close to the safety and security of the school buildings and looked 
for adult contact. Thorne (1993) also noted that the boys had control of 
ten times more playground space than the girls, and even then they would 
still invade the limited play area of the girls. 

Another area of difference in play styles relates to the boys' tendency 
to emphasise competitiveness as opposed to the girls' desire for 
cooperation (Lindsay & Palmer, 1981; Thorne, 1993; Twarek, 1994; 
Lewis & Phillipsen, 1998). "While boys use a rhetoric of contests and 
teams, girls describe their relations using language which stresses co-
operation and 'being nice'" (Thorne & Luria, 1986, 179). 

Gender issues within playground rhymes. . The Power Perspective 
Power related aspects are at the centre of much of what children's 

folklore is about. Modem folklore researchers have recognised the need 

to look beneath the superficially placid surface of children's 
play to understand how important are the power-related as-
pects of children's folklore and its formation. . . the dominant 
theme throughout is that of the power children exercise over 
each other, and the power they seek in their relationships to 
adults, mythical or real. (McMahon & Sutton-Smith, 1999, 
299) 

The power exercised by children in the area of playground rhymes re-
lates to both that of language and relationships. The ownership children 
have of playground rhymes allows them to manipulate language for their 
own purposes, free from adult control. The power within the 

16 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

rhymes themselves relates to control over others, whether this be peers, 
inter-gender relationships, or adults, authority figures in particular be-
cause, ". . . as children compose the most powerless subaltern group, we 
should expect them to have multiple and complex ways of subverting 
authority." (McMahon & Sutton-Smith, 1999,302) 

Teachers, in particular, are often the subjects of such verbal assaults 
with parodies such as such favourites as: 

Row, row row your boat, 
Gently down the stream,  
Throw your teacher overboard, 
And listen to her scream! 

and 
Pokare, kare, ana, 
I had a squashed banana, 
I threw it at the teacher, 
She said come here. . . 

A gender based issue arising from such rhymes relates to whether the 
female teacher is a greater target than her male counterpart, and if so 
why this would be the case. 

There is also evidence that many of these rhymes are part of a cul-
ture of subversive acts of resistance against both adult authority and at 
times the other gender (Factor, 1988; Grugeon, 2001). Attempts by 
school authorities to ban or limit these rhymes, as occurred in Australia 
(Factor, 1988, 176) and in Britain (Grugeon, 2001,101), have only 
served to drive them underground or make children more cautious with 
their use when near adults. 

Although close interaction between the sexes is not necessarily a 
feature of playground activity in the middle years, Factor (1988) ob-
served that "rhymes and games are shared throughout the school" (136). 
She also noted that with the changes in social values and attitudes, 
evidence of power conflicts between the sexes became obvious in the 
development of some of the rhymes. The 60s rhyme, 

Girls are weak,  
Chuck 'em in the creek. 
Boys are strong, 
Like King Kong. 

produced many variants from the 70s onwards that reflect this sparring 
and was possibly influenced by the development of girl power, with the 
intense "girls can do anything" campaign of the time. 

17 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

Boys have the muscles,  
Girls have the brains. 
Boys are the stupidest,  
And we won the games. (140) 

Grugeon (1993) noted in her collection of rhymes from girls that 

Listening to the words of the songs which accompany these games 
and watching the actions involved, a robust and challenging tone is 
apparent-parodying and ridiculing. Men and boys are mocked. . . In 
many versions the boyfriend is thrown around until he loses his 
underpants. Boyfriends have 'pickles' on their nose and are in 
danger of having their willies drastically shortened and balls caught 
in barbed wire. (23) 

Grugeon recognised that girls use language, in preference to actual 
physical aggression, as a peaceful means of retaliation to the provocation 
of boys. 

. The Rude and Crude 
Boys and girls are both actively involved in rhymes that challenge 

and defy adult standards and conventions. These rhymes give children 
the opportunity to explore taboo subjects and adult themes within the 
safe environment of the school playground (Grugeon, 1988). There are a 
variety of terms used by researchers of the past to describe this type of 
rhyme. The Opies (1959, 113-116) used the terms "erotic verse" or "the 
improper." Other terms used include "vulgar rhymes" (Turner, 
1978, 162), "obscene rhymes" (Sutton-Smith, 1981, 95), "shockers" 
(Knapp & Knapp, (1976, 179-189). Lowenstein also made reference to 
"improper rhymes" and defined them as 

. . . those rhymes created or circulated by children, which are 
calculated to shock or disgust the listener, to challenge adult 
refinement and to show, in the case of jokes about sex, that the 
child concerned is aware of its mysteries and has penetrated the 
adult veil of secrecy about sexual matters. (Lowenstein, 
1974,1) 

Lowenstein's "Shocking, Shocking, Shocking" (1974) exposed a 
number of children's improper rhymes that were current in Australia 
during the 1960s and 1970s. She found that it was the "good" girls who 
were the real experts in this area, rather than the "bad" boys. Her find-
ings disputed the belief that obscene rhymes were commonly circulated 
among boys and "not very nice girls" or belonged to the "ogre child" or 
"delinquent" (Opie, 1959, 115-116). Also disputed was the finding that 
18 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

these rhymes were more likely to be known by working class children 
than the sheltered middle class girls, who were in fact the source of much 
of Lowenstein's material (6). Similarly, Factor (2000) commented that, 

In my experience there are students at the most expensive 
private girls' schools who have as extensive a repertoire of 
vulgar and abusive rituals as the toughest, roughest boys in the 
working class suburbs of our major cities. (xxii) 

This contrasted directly with the comments from the previous century by 
Bolton (1888). 

We take pleasure in stating that in all our oral and written 
communications with children in every walk of life we have 
not received a single vulgar rhyme, nor one containing foul 
language. The nearest approach to an oath is the exclamation 
'Gracious Peter.' (Bolton, cited in Turner et al, 1978, 158) 

The Opies' (1959) claim likewise that, "genuinely erotic verse, 
however, is unusual" (115) in children's groups. Comments such as these 
are reflections of the collectors' attitudes and their relationship with the 
children they were involved with, and also possibly reflect the more 
restrictive attitudes of that particular era. 

In more recent years researchers have acknowledged the gendered 
nature of the content of the rhymes themselves. Grugeon (2001) ex-
pressed a strong interest in the 

gendered nature of the content of the singing games played by 
girls in the first four years at school, in the way these games 
parody adult norms and behaviour, often dealing with taboo 
subjects through mocking and subversive texts. (99) 

Rhymes such as the prolific "When Susie was a baby" allow young girls 
to explore the possibilities of adult life and the new roles they will soon 
be encountering in terms of the passage of life from infancy to death and 
after (Factor, 1988; Arleo, 2001). These rhymes allow children a 
"freedom from customary propriety" (Factor, 1988, 174) and to explore 
issues not available in their non-play lives. Sexually suggestive verses 
have been added and adapted across "social, political, linguistic and 
geographical barriers" (Arleo, 2001, 130). 

When Suzy was a teenager, a teenager, a teenager 
When Suzy was a teenager, she used to go like this: 
'Ooh, aah, I lost my bra in my boyfriend's car, 
I don't know where my knickers are. 

19 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

Ooh, aah, there they are— 
Hanging in my boyfriend's car. (Arleo, 131) 

Grugeon (2001) also examined the use of Spice Girl songs parodied 
by young girls and accompanied by explicitly sexual and provocative 
actions, in terms of the process of media texts being adapted to the 
playground. Such rhymes also demonstrate the ease with which popular 
culture and mass media can be absorbed into children's play (Ackerley, 
2002). 

"The existence of vulgar and obscene children's lore is now 
recognised as a universal phenomenon. . ." (Factor, 1988, 
160) 

The usage of these rhymes gives a certain satisfaction, not only in 
playful exploration of language, but also in the exploration of adult 
taboos, and the appearance of "knowing" about such adult matters be-
yond their current experience. These rhymes give the participant an air 
of maturity that temporarily disguises the ignorance and inexperience. 
The children appear to know more than they do. 

The openness of boys is contrasted with the subversiveness of the 
girls. Thome and Luria's (1986) observations of playground behaviour 
show the boys being more prepared to take risks. 

Both girls and boys know dirty words but flaunting of the 
words and risking punishment for their use is more frequent in 
boys' than in girls' groups. Dirty talk is a stable part of the 
repertoire of boys' groups. Such talk defines their groups as 
outside the reach of school discipline (180-81) 

The more subversive and private nature of the girls' behaviour sees them 
partaking in "giggling sessions" (183) on carefully guarded topics. 

. Sex Role Stereotypes 
Children's playground rhymes reflect the division between tradition 

and modernity, stability and change, the conservative and the in-
novative. The traditions of the past are preserved even though social 

changes have taken place. Virginia Caputo (1990) focuses on the 
traditional in her studies into children's songs in Canadian schools. 

Changes in adult culture, with regard to issues of equality be-
tween men and women, the re-evaluation of patriarchal atti-
tudes. . . do not seem to be reflected in children's musical cul-
ture as much as one might expect. (4) 

20 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

Factor (1988), however, had a greater awareness in the variations in 
the rhymes reflecting changes in attitudes and societal values. She 
commented that changes in rhymes over time are a result "of children's 
acute observation and awareness of shifts in social values, their sharp ear 
for whatever is new and newsworthy." (142) 

Sutton-Smith (1972) also recognised this duality. "In seeking to 
understand children at play. . . we must hold in mind the dual fact that 
children are innovative as well as conservative" (65). Mary and Herbert 
Knapp also stress that "while children are remarkably conservative in 
preserving their traditions for generations, they are also very flexible in 
adapting their lore to present concerns" (Knapp & Knapp, 1976, 14). 

In response to the publicity about the longevity of women the fol-
lowing rhyme was heard in Australian playgrounds: 

Boys are weak, 
Chuck 'em in the creek.  
Girls are stronger, 
They live longer. 

(Factor, 1988, 141) 

Jorgenson (1980) commented that rhymes such as this, and the 
Susie saga 

often carry with them partially hidden attitudes, values and 
feelings which are particularly important to female children in 
this age group of approximately five to twelve years. At this 
time in their lives, young girls are beginning to consider the 
possibilities inherent in adult life and the new roles they will 
soon be encountering, especially ones such as girl friend, wife 
and mother. (63) 

Issues arising and methodological considerations. 
As a result of considering a wide range of research related to chil-

dren's play and folklore, there are two key issues that emerge. First is 
the trend of moving away from the consideration and collection of 
what children play, to the investigation of why and how these folklore 
traditions are kept alive. The comprehensive collections of the past 
decades (Opie, 1959; Opie, 1969; Turner, 1969; Kelsey, 1962-1990), 
though still of great value, have given way to greater consideration of the 
conditions under which such play occurs (Thorne, 1993; Grugeon, 2001; 
Bishop & Curtis, 2001). 

McMahon & Sutton-Smith (1999) have recognised and encouraged 
a trend towards interpretive research and observations of context, both 
"historical and situational" (306) with a caution on being over zealous 

21 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

in "reading into children's folklore what simply isn't there" (306). Re-
lated to the consideration of the situational, is the fact that-the research 
cited in this review occurs largely in the school playground. Gender 
characteristics may be quite different had more observations been carried 
out in the neighbourhood or home environments. The social context of 
such research is of vital importance. 

Limitations of earlier research collections have included the prob-
lems of the biases of the collectors and their methods (Turner, 1969; 
Grugeon, 1988). Turner speculated that early collections such as Bolton's 
(1888) collection of counting out rhymes did not include rude rhymes 
because the children he collected them from did not "want to offend 
him" (158). 

The second issue to be aware of is related to the danger of creating a 
mind set prior to carrying out research. Thorne (1993) warns against the 
different culture mind set when considering gender issues. If observers 
concentrate their observations on distinct boy-girl groupings, then results 
will be different to observations with a focus on interaction between the 
two groups. Thorne (1993) advises starting "with a sense of the whole 
rather than an assumption of gender as separation and difference" (108). 

Similarly verbal folklore should not be considered as entirely dis-
tinct from the adult world, as much of this rhetoric results from obser-
vations and mimicry of adults. With a recognised increase in verbal play 
with age, the boundaries between adult and children's humour are less 
defined, especially when considering the more vulgar rhymes. So much 
so that "in their mid teens, it is difficult to divide their rude rhymes and 
jokes from the adult tradition" (Lowenstein, 1974, 1). 

Conclusion 
This literature review has considered the gender implications em-

bedded in children's playground rhymes. There is a strong historical 
influence, seen in the physical gender divisions in the playgrounds 1990s 
and earlier. Environmental and social changes from the middle of the 
20th century have resulted in a move from physical folklore play to more 
emphasis on the verbal and symbolic. 

Although girls are shown to be the bearers and preservers of the 
traditional playground rhymes, inter-gender rivalry can be acted out 
through playground rhymes. Both sexes use rhymes as a vehicle to mock 
the power of those who have authority over them. The parodying of 
adult norms of behaviour and the exploration of a variety of possibilities 
in terms of the passages of life also feature gender, along with sexuality 
and stereotypes, which are also explored through these rhymes. 

22 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

CHAPTER THREE 
Methodology 
Introduction 

There are two parts to this research process. 

1. The collection and organisation of the data, and 
2. The close examination of the raw data for identification of patterns, 

themes and issues related to the objectives of this research. 

. Over view of General Collection Methods 

Folklore has traditionally relied on multiple methodologies. 
Among the most prominent of these techniques are reminis-
cences, interviews and diaries, surveys and questionnaires, ob-
servations and experiments. (Fine, 1999, 121) 

This researcher acknowledges that the multi-method approach pro-
duces the most complete range of data, but practicalities such as time 
constraints, resources and expenses must be taken into consideration. 
Notable researchers in the field of the collection of children's folklore 
have used a variety of methods depending on the focus of their studies. A 
combination of reminiscences (oral history) and observations were used 
by the Opies (1959, 1969), Sutton-Smith (1959, 1981), Bronner, (1988), 
Knapp & Knapp (1976), Factor (1983-1988), Turner (1969), and 
Lowenstein (1974). Reminiscences have the advantage of being 
relatively easy to collect and can yield historical or comparative data. 
However, the material collected is verbal rather than behaviour based 
and, because it is based on recall, may be subject to inaccuracies. 

Observations have the advantage of occurring in a natural context 
and may involve video or audio recording. This technique was used by 
Goodwin (1985), Hughes (1999), Marsh (2001) and Beresin (1999) and 
has the advantage of going beyond the text of the rhyme, capturing the 
verbal nuances, cadence and rhythm. It also places the folklore in a social 
setting 

Hughes (1999) combined interviews with observations and focussed 
on the 'how' of play in observing the social interaction in the midst of 
playground games, four square in particular, with the contention that "the 
gaming of the game is as important as the game" (72). She commented 
that with this research technique the researcher does not know 
beforehand exactly what the outcomes will be and, therefore, must re-
main open to all possibilities. Marsh (2001) and Beresin's (1999) re-
search, using audio-visual techniques, allowed the research to go beyond 
the text and reveal intricacies of the wider social setting. The trend in 
recent years has been to conduct research that examines the 

23 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE ?LA YGROUND RHYMES 

broader context of the games, but with a narrower focus on a particular 
games' type; for example, Beresin (1999) examined jump rope rhymes, 
Hughes (1999) four square, and Marsh (2001) hand clapping games. 

Data Source and Collection 
The collection method used for this research project is a result of 

the researcher's involvement with the National Diploma in Children's 
Literature (N.Z.). Students of the Patterns of Language course (C.L. 
713), for which the researcher is currently the Course Director, were 
required to collect samples of children's playground rhymes on a stan-
dardised form (Appendix II) and submit this to their tutor as a course 
requirement. The transcript of the rhyme, the place and method of col-
lection, the social context, significant oral features and details relating to 
gender, culture and the age of the children involved, were all recorded 
on this form. Permission was granted from the Centre for Children's 
Literature, Christchurch College of Education, to use this collection for 
research purposes. The rhymes have been collected since 1993 and have 
been filed by the researcher on a first line or title basis. The collection at 
the present time numbers just over 4000 individual items. The rhymes 
used for analysis by this researcher were rhymes that were current in the 
last ten years. 

For the purpose of historical comparisons, however, the researcher 
will consider rhymes that were recalled by respondents from earlier 
times, as well as rhymes from the collections of Sutton-Smith (1959; 
1972; 1981); Turner (1969; 1978); Opie (1959,1969,1985); and Factor 
(1983-1988). 

Advantages and Disadvantages of Collection Method 
The method of collection used for this research resulted in a wide 

geographical coverage. This coverage extended throughout New Zea-
land from the top of the North Island to the bottom of the South Island. 
A wide range of community types were also covered in the collection, 
ranging from large multi-cultural city schools to small rural communi-
ties. This extent of coverage would have been very difficult and time 
consuming if observational studies had been carried out by the re-
searcher alone. 

This method employs a combination of techniques including remi-
niscences, observations and informal interviews with individuals or 
groups of children in both school and community settings. The collec-
tors of the rhymes include parents, teachers, librarians, recent graduates, 
teacher trainees and people in general, who have an interest in children's 
language and books. Using this method of collection minimises possible 
ethical issues, as the rhymes are recorded anonymously as far as the user 
is concerned, with the collectors' details recorded only for the purposes 
of follow up or clarification. Collectors, however, must 
24 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

be mindful of the child's privacy and the need to be sensitive to any 
possible discomfort that may be caused. As adults we are intruders in the 
child's private world and sensitivity relating to issues of compulsion and 
authoritarianism should be realised. 

Possible limitations of the collection method would be that the data 
is verbally based rather than context based. There is only limited con-
sideration of the physical and social aspects of the rhymes, with the 
focus being on the accurate transcribing of the text of the language used. 
Video or oral tape recordings would allow many other features of the 
rhymes to be examined, but this would not have produced the quantity 
and wide range of material and would not be possible within the time 
frame of this study. 

This is a haphazard, rather than systematic method of collection. 
The researcher must also accept that there will be a level of inconsis-
tency with having so many individuals collecting the rhymes. A wide 
variety of methods were used for this purpose, including direct observa-
tions in both the playground and home, recollection interviews and some 
written responses from students. Consideration must also be given to the 
adult intrusiveness factor, children will only tell us what we think they 
want to hear. This factor was recognised by Turner (1969,158). 

Research Method 
The researcher considered that qualitative research design best 

suited the mode of analysis needed to meet the objectives of this project. 
The research design involves an inductive process of moving from 
specific data to a general theory. 

Researchers adopting a qualitative perspective are more con-
cerned to understand individual's perceptions of the world. 
They seek insight rather than statistical analysis. (Bell, 1993, 
5-6) 

This analysis contrasts with quantitative research methods that rely on 
deductive thinking, or the process of moving from general theory to 
specific observations. Qualitative research is ideal when working with 
subjects in social and cultural contexts. 

The grounded theory approach, linked to qualitative methodology, 
involves the close inspection and analysis of qualitative data. Grounded 
theory is a 

qualitative research method that uses a systematic set of pro-
cedures to develop an inductively derived theory about a phe-
nomenon. (Strauss & Corbib, cited in Neuman, 1997) 

25 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

This is an inductive method that involves continuous interplay between 
data and analysis. From the close analysis of the data salient categories 
and themes should emerge. 

The stages in moving from the raw data to the development of a 
grounded theory are as follows: 

1. 
2. 

Collection of raw data 
Organisation of data, filing, creating a computer data base, sorting 
larger units of data into smaller ones. 
Perusal. Getting overall sense of data, jotting down preliminary 
interpretations. 
Classification. Grouping data into themes. Looking for patterns. 
Finding meaning in data. 
Synthesis. Integrating and summarising data. Offering hypothesis 
or propositions 
Final Report 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 
(Leedy, P, 2001) 

The collection of the raw data has already been described in 3.1 
above. The organisation of data involved the filing of individual rhyme 
items as they came to hand on a first line or title basis. The data based 
sorting involved a spread sheet table organised in terms of type of rhyme 
and gender usage, that is whether the rhyme was used by male, female or 
mixed groupings. The eight main categories for the types of rhyme that 
emerged were skipping, clapping, taunts and teases, parodies, counting 
out, elastics, crude rhymes and amusement rhymes.  This enabled the 
researcher to become familiar with the wide range of data and also to 
distinguish between those rhymes which were current and those that 
were based on historical recall. This information was also valuable when 
looking at the gender usage of individual rhymes and details of this are 
included in the appendix of this study. The next stage involved the 
perusal of the raw material for gender related issues within the rhymes 
and then looking for patterns and classification groupings related to the 
selected rhymes. At this stage the researcher looked closely at the text of 
the rhymes, in an effort to identify possible gender based issues 
embedded within the rhymes themselves and also to consider possible 
categories or classification groupings that may be forming. The 
synthesis process involves close examination of the selected rhymes and 
additional consultation and comparisons with related collection material, 
both current and historical. 

Once completed the researcher moves on to presenting the final 
report. 

Folklorist Gary Fine (1999) has described three different perspec-
tives in analysing folklore. . thematype, being analysis according to a theme or structure. 
26 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

.  ecotype, being analysis according to social environment.  .   ego type, being analysis of performance. 

Any item of folklore can be analysed from any and all per-
spectives, although most folklore approaches focus on only 
one. (Fine, 1980, cited in Sutton-Smith, 1999,47) 

Thematype analysis was the perspective taken with this study. 
In the final report and discussion, where rhymes have been lengthy 

or complex, only relevant extracts have been cited. Full text of the 
rhymes and details relating to the context and gender details of the users 
of the rhymes concerned, are given in detail in the appendix section of 
this research. 

CHAPTER FOUR 
Results and Discussion 
Introduction 

The focus of this research is to look beyond the surface features of 
the text of children's playground rhymes and to explore culturally and 
socially constructed gender issues embedded within the rhymes. When 
discussing the ambiguity of children's play Fagen (1981) commented 
that 

The most irritating feature of play is not the perceptual inco-
herence, as such, but rather that play taunts us with its inacces-
sibility. We feel that something is behind it all but we do not 
know, or have forgotten how to see it. (Fagen, cited in Sutton-
Smith, 1997,2) 

Close analysis of the rhymes, revealed the categories and themes as 
outlined in Table 1. It should be noted here that the categories are not all 
inclusive and the boundaries between them not clearly defined. There 
may be some overlapping in terms of categories and themes. 
Four main categories emerged on close examination of the content of the 
rhymes. The categories identified by the researcher were 

.   stereotypes—in relation to how children view and form images   
      of gender .    power—in relation to those who control the lives of children and  
      how they control others in their peer grouping and associations   
      with aggression and dominance. .    taboo—aspects that are forbidden or not spoken about openly.  .    life passages—traditional passages through life including rites of  
      passage and future roles that children may anticipate. 

27 



GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

Table 1: 
Categories and themes identified within children's playground rhymes. 

Category 
Themes Rhyme 

 Examples (first line) 
Stereotypes Body image is all- 

important; perpetuation of 
"good" girl, "bad" boy 
myth; the formation of gen- 
der role identity is part of 
growing up. 

Girls are sexy: I'm sexy, I'm 
cute: Oh my gosh! I think I 
broke a nail: I must increase my 
bust: I'm a Barbie girl: Ladies 
and gentlemen: I'm a little 
Dutch girl: I'm a little angel: 
Down in the meadow: Mummy 
had a baby: Here comes the 
bride. 

Power Ridicule of, and resistance 
against, those who hold 
power; girls do not have to 
submit to attempts at male 
dominance; boys/girls are 
superior to the opposite sex. 

Joy to the world: On top of spa- 
ghetti: Glory Halleluiah: Po kare 
kare ana: Row, row, row your 
boat: My boyfriend gave me an 
apple: Under the apple tree: 
Girls are weak: Boys are strong. 

Taboo Natural bodily functions 
and parts hold a particular 
fascination; possession of 
"adult" sexual knowledge is 
a status symbol within the 
peer group; children have a 
desire to shock and defy 
adult prohibitions; chil- 
dren's recognition and 
mockery of different sexual 
preferences. 

My boyfriend's name: My 
friend Billy: Ellie I, Ellie I: 
Nicholas Pickolas: Cinderella 
dressed in yella: Old King Cole: 
Hickory, dickory: Roses are red: 
Jack and Jill: Waltzing Matilda: 
Ashes to ashes: A man's occu- 
pation: Georgie Porgie: Little 
Jack Horner: I love you. 

Life Passages Different life stages are a 
reflection of traditional and 
contemporary social influ- 
ences; courting rituals and 
choosing a marriage partner 
by a divination process; 
distinct features of the New 
Zealand male culture. 

When Susie was a baby: 
K.I.S.S.I.N.G: AB.C.D: Doh, 
the stuff that buys me beer: God 
of nations: Sex, drugs and rock 
and roll: Roll your dope: Weed 
is a plant: It's raining: Fitz, 
Merts. 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

Unless stated otherwise all these rhymes are part of the National Folk-
lore Collection (N.Z.). The full text of each rhyme is recorded in Ap-
pendix 1. 

Stereotypes 
The gender related stereotypes identified by the researcher relate to 

conformity to the "perfect" body image, the "good" girl "bad" boy myth 
and changing gender roles. 

. Body Image conformity 
The conformity to the image of the "ideal," both for males and fe-

males, can be recognised within the context of many of the children's 
rhymes. 

Girls are sexy, made out of Pepsi 
Boys are ugly, made out of rugby. 

(Part of the clapping rhyme beginning "My 
mother, your mother, lived down the street. . . 
80,90 Marble Street. . . see Appendix I). 

Boys have got the muscles, 
Teachers got the brains,  
Girls have got the sexy legs,  
So they win all the games. 

I'm sexy, I'm cute, 
I'm popular to boot. 
Great looking, great hair, 
The boys will love to stare 
Go, go go touros 

(This was chanted by both boys and girls 
while waiting in line for a turn on the flying 
fox in the junior school playground.) 

This image, however, is also subject to mockery. These rhymes 
emerge as a reaction to the extreme pressures exerted by media, to con-
form the ideal female stereotype. They are usually recited by pre- ado-
lescent girls and are chanted in a highly exaggerated manner, at the 
same time taking the opportunity to mock the male, rugby fanatic. 

Oh my gosh! I think I broke a nail. 
It's totally for sure. 
I'm gonna need a manicure. 
The sun up there, is shining on my gorgeous hair.  
Hey, you! Go home, 

29 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

I'm talking on my telephone. 
23,24, I don't know the stupid score!  
Go, go, fight, fight, 
Gee I hope I look all right! 

Direct references and undermining of pressured advertising campaigns 
are made in the following rhymes 

I must, I must increase my bust,  
Cos then, cos then, I will attract men,  
And get a job, a job, 
working as a blob At Jenny Craig, 
Jenny Craig, 

So they can all catch my plague,  
and get fat, get fat! 
So what do you think of that! 

Alternative version: 
(The bigger the better, the tighter the, 
sweater, the boys depend on us.) 

and in the parody of the Barbie song by the pop group Aqua. 

I'm a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world,  
Life's fantastic, I'm made out of plastic,  
I've got rubber hair, purple underwear,  
I take a shower, every half hour.  
Come on Barbie, let's go party.... 

A more recent addition to rhymes relating to body image relates to 
the pre and early teen routine of removing bodily hair, in particular the 
'adult' process of shaving of the legs. The clapping rhyme beginning 
"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls ... " contains the following lines: 

I went to school, it was pretty cool. 
I shaved my legs and my face went red. 
I came back home and my mummy said, 
Naughty, naughty, girl 
For shaving your legs! 

Alternative version 
I got back home and my daddy said, 
You're too young to shave your legs. . . 

An interesting feature of the alternative version cited here, is that 
the group chanting this rhyme contained boys as well as girls. The re- 

30 

 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

searcher has assumed that was the reason for the following lines being 
added: 

I went upstairs to light the fire, 
My balls got stuck in the electric fire.  
I went to the doctor, the doctor said,  
Sorry, Mister, but your balls are dead! 

. The "good" girl, "bad" boy image 
Research by Zumwalt (1999) recognised the opposing images of 

the "ideal" little girl and the "real" little girl as presented in children's 
playground rhymes. The 'good' or 'ideal' little girl is respectful, pre-
dictable, co-operative as shown in the initial part of the skipping rhyme: 

I'm a little Dutch girl dressed in blue 
These are the things that I must do,  
Bow to the King, 
Curtsey to the Queen, 
Show my undies to the rugby team. 

The final line here introducing us to another side of the "good" girl, the 
subversive, provocative tease. A similar contradiction can be seen in this 
rhyme: 

I'm a little angel, 
I don't swear, 
Bugger, bugger, bull shit,  
I don't care! 

In looking closely at the rhymes the researcher noted that it is the 
girl that is the tease and the boys often appear as somewhat dull, one-
dimensional characters. 

Boys, boys are no fun 
Here comes Susie with a mini skirt on.  
She can wobble, she can wibble, 
She can do the splits. 

If indeed the boy does make the first move towards the girl, it is the girl 
that is made to feel the ashamed. 

Down in the meadow where the green grass grows, 
There sat little Mary as sweet as a rose. 
Along came a boy and kissed her on the cheek.  
Shame little Mary! 

31 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

Who's your little boyfriend?  
A, B, C, D... 

. Gender-role Identity 
Gender-role identity develops predominantly during the period of 

middle childhood and relates to the way children see themselves relative 
to male and female traits. These roles can be developed and ex-
perimented with, within the bounds of their rhymes and chants, as can be 
seen in this handclapping rhyme: 

My mummy had a baby, yummy, yummy. 
My daddy is a dentist, gummy, gummy. 
My sister is a show off, honey, honey. 
My brother is a cowboy, bang, bang, boom, boom.  
Fifty bullets in my head! 
Turn around, touch the ground. 
Freeze! 

As children love to create chaos and overturn the adult world (Sutton-
Smith, 1999,302), the nonsense element creeps in with: 

My name is Andy Pandy, sugar and candy 
Mum's gone crazy, 
Dad's had a baby! 
Do me a favour 
Get lost! 

A long-standing gender-role stereotype can be seen in the tradi-
tional wedding song beginning, Here comes the bride. Turner (1959) has 
noted the use of this rhyme in 1930, the Opies recorded it in 1959. The 
more recent rhymes have similarities to the historical versions, with the 
additional comments about the groom and a bawdy ending. 

Here comes the bride, 
Big, fat and wide. 
Slipped on a banana, 
Went for a ride. Turner (1930) 

Here comes the bride, 
Fair, fat and wide, 
She cannot get in the front door, 
She has to get in the side. Opie (1959) 

32 



 

JANICE ACKERLE 

Here comes the bride, 
Fair, fat and wide. 
Where is the groom? 
He's in the bathroom. 
Why is he there? 
He lost his underwear. 
Great waterfall, he's peeing on the wall. 
Here comes the usher, 
The old toilet flusher. Current 

She went with Romeo. 
Here comes the bride, 
Fat, fair and wide. 
Slipped on a banana skin, 
And went for a ride.  
Where did she go? 
She went to Mexico. 
What did she wear? 
Purple underwear. 
With whom did she go?  
She went with Romeo Current 

Power 
 It is in the playground, away from adult influence and control, the 
children find true power. 

Children's folklore can be considered hypothetically as a se-
ries of hidden transcripts of the non-powerful segment of the 
population known as children. (Sutton-Smith, 2001, 116). 

I suggest, along these lines, how we might interpret the ru-
mour, gossip, folktales, gestures, jokes and theatre of the 
powerless as vehicles by which, among other things, they 
insinuate a critique of power while hiding behind 
innocuous understandings of their conduct. . . . Together 
these forms of insubordination might suitably be called the 
infrapolitics of the powerless. (Scott, 1990, xiii) 

Much of children's folklore consists of hidden transcripts. A hidden 
transcript according to James C. Scott (1992) "is a critique of power 
spoken behind the back of the dominant" (xi). In this case the dominant 
are the adults, parents and teachers, in the child's world. Their rhymes 
serve as expressions of defiance, as a challenge to the controlling forces 
in their lives. 

33 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

The messages contained within the rhymes related to power come 
from both ends of a continuum. At one end we have expressions of 
extreme violence enacted against the dominating power with examples 
such as Waltzing Matilda, On top of Spaghetti, Po Karekare Ana and Joy 
to the World. At the other end the researcher has found a subtle 
undermining in the form of teases, "Boys are weak, chuck 'em in the 
creek" directed at the opposite sex. All these rhymes have a form of 
power at their base. 

. Ridicule of teachers 
The dominant authority figure in a child's world, at the age when 

playground rhymes are most prominent, is the schoolteacher. Even 
though changes to a less authoritarian culture within our schools over 
the last 30 years have taken place, this change has not been reflected in 
the text of the rhymes chanted by children today about their teachers. 
The tradition of undermining the teacher and their associated power still 
exists. This has been commented on by Factor "These rhymes endure 
despite changes in school climate and ethos in the last 30 years" (1988, 
159) and Caputo (1990). 

Changes in adult culture with regard to issues of equality be-
tween men and women, the re-evaluation of patriarchal atti-
tudes, new ideas about methods of teaching have developed 
over the last twenty years or more, and so on, do not seem to 
be reflected in children's singing culture as much as one might 
expect. (Caputo, 1990,4) 

The key gender issue that this researcher has identified within the 
selection of rhymes that mock the authority of the teacher, is that just 
over 90% of the references are to female teachers. Of the 62 individual 
rhymes referring to teachers, 56 made reference to female teachers, 2 to 
male teachers and 4 were neutral. This can be compared with the past 
collections of Turner (1969; 1978), and Opie (1959), where 60% of the 
references were to female teachers. 

Joy to the world, 
The teacher's dead. 
We barbequed her head.  
What happened to her body?  
We flushed it down the potty. 

Round and round it goes, 
Round and round it goes. 

On top of spaghetti, 
34 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

All covered in blood (sand) 
I shot my poor teacher, 
With a M 16 slug (grey rubber band) 
I shot her with pleasure, 
I shot her with pride, 
I couldn't have missed her, 
She was 20 foot wide. 
I went to her funeral, I went to her grave 
Some people threw flowers, 
I threw a grenade! 

Glory, glory halleluiah, 
Teacher hit me with a ruler, 
Poked her in the chin, 
With a rotten mandarin. 
And her teeth came marching ou-ou-out! 

Row, row, row your boat,  
Gently down the stream,  
Throw your teacher overboard  
And listen to her scream.  
Ahhhh! 

Po kare, kare ana, 
I had a rotten banana,  
I threw it at the teacher, 
She said, "Come here!"  
I said, "No fear! 
I'll be back next year,  
With a bottle of beer!" 

The dominance of references to female teachers may be because 
they are seen as "easier" targets for such abuse, but may also simply 
reflect the male/female teacher proportions in our primary schools today. 
Latest figures from the N.Z. Ministry of Education's 2002 teacher survey 
reveal that only 13.6% of teachers in primary schools are male. The 
extreme violence contained within these rhymes would also suggest that 
while they are serving a purpose of mocking authority, they are not to be 
taken seriously, although situations in some schools where violent acts 
against teachers are increasing, may demonstrate otherwise. 

. Overcoming Male Dominance 
Girls have developed ways of overcoming male dominance in their 

rhymes. Rather than expressing overt aggression, the girls in their 
rhymes discretely undermine the males by a subtle 'turning of the ta- 
 35 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

bles." This can be seen in the changes in a rhyme developing from a 
popular singing game of the past, beginning "My boyfriend gave me an 
apple, my boyfriend gave me a pear." In the earlier versions of this 
rhyme the girl is depicted as being manipulated by male suitors. 

". . . All the boys are waiting, 
For to take me out. 
One will give me an apple,  
One will give me a pear,  
One will give me fifty cents,  
To kiss behind the stair. 
I'd rather wash the dishes,  
I'd rather scrub the floor, 
I don't want an apple, 
I don't want a pear, 
I don't want fifty cents 
To kiss behind the stair. 

(New York, 1926) 

The 1975 version contains the lines 

My mother took my necklace,  
My father took my dime, 
My sister took my lover-boy,  
And gave me Frankenstein. 
He made me dust the windows,  
He made me scrub the floor, 
He made me sew his smelly socks,  
So I kicked him out the door. 

(Opie, 1985) 

There is a hint of the feisty young girl at the end of this rhyme, but this 
was only the beginning of the young girls turning the tables on the pre-
sumptuous males! The rhymes from the researchers current collection 
have many more aggressive variations on this theme. 

My boyfriend gave me an apple,  
My boyfriend gave me a pear. . . 

Version 1 
I made him do the washing, 
I made him do the floor, 
I made him clean the baby's bum,  
In 1994! 

Version 2 
I took him to the café, 

36 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

To get some bubblegum,  
But when he wasn't looking,  
I shoved it up his bum, 
I took him back home, 
To tuck him into bed, 
But when he wasn't looking,  
I farted on his head! 

Version 3 
I gave him back his apple, 
I gave him back his pear, 
I gave him back his kiss on the lips,  
And threw him down the stairs. 
I threw him over England, 
I threw him over France, 
I threw him over the Waikato Bridge,  
And he lost his underpants. 

. Inter-gender Teasing 
Playground teasing between the sexes takes the form of playful 

banter rather than that of the more serious malicious taunts. Sutton-
Smith (1999), makes a distinction between teases and taunts. A taunt is " 
a malicious verbal expressive activity involving a victim," and a tease is 
"a verbal expressive activity involving a minimal degree of victimi-
sation, with 'fun' rather than hurt as the motivation" (314). 

Rhymes that are slightly provocative and contain teasing elements 
include; 

Boys, boys are no fun, 
Here comes Susie with a mini skirt on, 
She can wibble, she can wobble, 
She can do the splits 
I bet you five bucks you can't do this. 

(from Apple on a stick) 

Under the apple tree,  
My boyfriend said to me, 
Kiss me, hug me, 
Tell me that you love me. 
Underneath the apple tree, 
My boyfriend said to me,  
GET LOST! 

Another very common form of inter-gender teasing comes as part of 
one of the most popular clapping rhymes in this researcher's collection. 
There were a total of 132 individual entries for this rhyme "Under 

37 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

the Bambushes." Of this total, 128 were collected from girls. The rhyme 
concludes with a rhyming couplet that always follows the same format, 
but varies in content; 

Boys are spastic, 
Made out of plastic. 

Boys got to Mars, 
To get fast cars. 

Girls are sexy,  
Made out of Pepsi. 

Girls go to Mars, 
To get more bras. 

Boys are rotten,  
Made out of cotton. 

Boys go to Jupiter,  
To get more stupider. 

The Taboo 
 Rhymes dealing directly or indirectly with taboo subjects are a 
prime source of amusement for children. 

Defecation, urination, nudity, the private parts, the sex organs, 
and the sex act, which, in a civilised society, are kept private, 
have a fearful fascination for children. (Opie, 1993, 15) 

These rhymes are the property of both boys and girls and involve the 
mocking of adult values and preoccupations. "These rhymes parody 
adult norms and behaviour, often dealing with taboo subjects through 
mocking and subversive texts" (Grudgeon, 200 I, 99). 

. Bodily functions and parts 
One of the key themes related to taboo subjects is the fascination 

children have with natural bodily functions and parts. An analysis of the 
researcher's rhymes related to farting or passing wind, shows that boys 
are involved in the telling of 80% of these rhymes, whereas with the 
more sexually explicit rhymes the balance is more evenly spread. This 
matches the findings of other researchers (Lowenstein, 1974; Factor, 
2000). The boys are likely to be more open and direct with their telling 
of the rhymes while the girls may be more subversive (Thorne & Luria, 
1986). 
38 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

While heeding the warning of McMahon and Sutton-Smith (1999, 
306), not to read too much into the interpretations of these rhymes, this 
researcher has noted a comment made by Grugeon (2001. p100) on the 
relationship between the notion of 'swallowing a snake' and the sug-
gestion of pregnancy. On investigating this link further the researcher 
found many more examples within the current collection that appeared 
to substantiate this link. 

Grugeon's examples were; 

and 

My boyfriend's name is Tony 
He comes from Macaroni. . . 
I jumped in a lake and swallowed a snake 
And came up with a bellyache. 

(Jessica, Bedford, 1979) 

Meet my boyfriend Fairycake 
He gave me a cake and a bellyache. 

(Bedford, 1995) 

Further examples located by this researcher not only further extend 
the pregnancy premise, but also establish a direct link of the penis with 
a snake. 

My friend Billy, had a ten foot willy.  
He showed it to the lady next door.  
She thought it was a snake, 
And hit it with a rake, 
And now it's only five foot four! 

Alternative 
(I shot it with a sniper 
'Cos 1 thought it was a viper,  
And now it's only five foot four!) 

Other current versions collected from New Zealand playgrounds 
that make reference to the snake and the subsequent bellyache include 

Ellie I, Ellie I, 
Chickalie, chickalie, 
Went to California, jumped in a lake, 
Swallowed a snake, and came out with a bellyache. 

and 

My name is Nicholas, Picholas, 

39 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

Don't be ridiculous, 
Why don't you do me a favour,  
Swim in the lake, swallow a snake,  
And then come back with a bellyache. 

and from the rhyme beginning, My boyfriend's name is Jackie. He 
comes from Taranaki. . . 

One day when I went walking, 
I heard my boyfriend talking, 
To the prettiest girl with the strawberry curl,  
And this is what he said ,said, said. 
I L.O. VE. you—love you, 
I K.I.S.S. you—kiss you. 
So I jumped in the lake and swallowed a snake,  
And then came home with a bellyache. 

Perhaps the most commonly chanted rhyme in this section, with a 
total of 50 individual recordings (47 collected from girls), is this skip-
ping rhyme, 

Cinderella, dressed in yella, 
Went upstairs to kiss her fella, 
By mistake, she kissed a snake, 
And ended up with a bellyache. 
How many doctors will it take? 1,2,3. . . 

When searching back through earlier collections the researcher 
could find little mention of a snake in this context. In examining the 
Cinderella rhymes from the Australian Children's Folklore Collection, 
now stored in Museum Victoria, this researcher noted that of the 110 
Cinderella rhymes recorded, only three mentioned a snake and none 
made reference to a bellyache in connection with the snake. This re-
searcher concluded that the linkage established here is a more recent 
variation of the skipping rhyme. 

Turner recorded this version dated 1962-1973 Melbourne; 

Old King Cole had a forty-foot pole, 
He showed it to the lady next door. 
She thought it was a snake, and hit it with a rake,  
And now it's only two foot four. 

Dorothy Howard, in her 1968 publication, noted the Cinderella 
version, but according to Lowenstein (1974), she completely missed the 
sexual point. Although Lowenstein also commented that when she 

40 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

asked her son about this same rhyme he remarked "If children want to 
be rude, they aren't subtle, they make it obvious" (3). This comment 
further reinforces the gender differences between boys and girls in such 
matters, with the boys being more open in their usage of obscene 
rhymes. 

. Possession of 'adult' sexual knowledge as a status symbol 
A major preoccupation of children is the acquisition of sexual 

knowledge, with the culture of childhood allowing them to use the 
rhymes "to explore dangerous adult themes while remaining children" 
(Grugeon, 2001, 113). Through these rhymes children can display an 
assertion of familiarity of a supposedly adult area of experience. The 
declaration of "knowing" creates a certain status within the peer group. 

Jokes about sex and reproduction are also a sort of status sym-
bol, indicating to the less sophisticated that the teller is part of 
an in-group, and knows all adult secrets. (Lowenstein, 1974, 1) 

Some of the rhymes are very explicit and directly stated, while 
others contain a "hidden transcript" of meaning that the tellers may not 
even be aware of. The more directly explicit rhymes are often formed 
from parodies, and the effect on the listener is often one of shock, as 
what is heard may be totally unexpected. For some the thrill is simply in 
the use of taboo words and the accompanying "shock" factor. Examples 
from the researher's collection include 

Hickory dickory dock,  
The mouse ran up my frock,  
It bit my tit 
And made me spit,  
Hickory dickory dock 

Roses are red, 
Violets are corny 
When I think of you baby, 
Ohh I get horny. 

Jack and Jill went to the dairy, 
Jack pulled out his big and hairy.  
Jill said, "Wow what a whopper,  
Lay me down and do me proper.  
Three months later doing well, 
Six months later doing swell, 
Nine months later, snap, crackle, pop. 

41 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

Out came a baby with a six foot cock.  
No, that's not all, no, that's not all,  
Poor little bugger has only one ball! 

Waltzing Matilda, who bloody killed her?  
Lying in the grass, with a dagger up her arse.  
Along came granny, chopped off her fanny,  
Took her to the movies, chopped off her boobies,  
Took her to bed and chopped off her head,  
And that was then end of Waltzing Matilda. 

When I die, bury me, 
Hang my nuts (tits) from a cherry tree, 
When they're ripe, take a bite, Don't blame 
me if you fart all night. 

and the recitation from a 12 year old boy 

Jack and Jill, went up the hill,  
Each with a dollar quarter, 
Jill came down with two dollars fifty, 
Dirty hoe!! 

and the directly stated rhyme of a group of 9-12 year old males 

Ashes to ashes, 
Dust to dust, 
If it wasn't for the girls, 
Our balls would rust. 

The overlapping between the categories can be seen here with the 
following rhymes that are very explicit, but also follow a pattern similar 
to the life passage scenario, also giving warnings of the consequences of 
the acts involved. 

1+1 = the fun has just begun in the bedroom,  
2+2 = he's up to my shoe in the bedroom,  
3+3= he's up to my knee in the bedroom  
4+4= he's shut the door in the bedroom, 
5+5 = he's fucking me alive in the bedroom,  
6+6= he's licking my tits in the bedroom, 
7+7 = he's this feels like heaven in the bedroom,  
8+8= the doctor's at the gate in the bedroom,  
9+9= the twins are doing fine in the bedroom, 

42 



 

JANICE ACKERLE 

10+10= let's do it all again in the bedroom! 

Running down the road, knocking on the door,  
Fuck, dam, son of a bitch, couldn't find a whore. 
Finally found a whore, she was tall and thin,  
Fuck, dam, son of a bitch, couldn't get it in.  
Finally got it in, wiggled it around, 
Fuck, dam, son of a bitch, 
Couldn't get it out. 
Finally got it out, it was red and sore, 
The moral of the story is, 
Never fuck a whore! 

The childish fascination with the mysteries of the sexual act can be 
seen in this sequence of rhymes collected from the 1950s to the present 
time. This researcher compared the confusions of the past, 

A man's occupation is to stick his doodle-ation  
(cock-u-lation) 
Into a women's ventilation, 
To increase the population, 
Of the younger generation, 
Of the world. 

Melbourne, 1973 (Lowenstein), Newcastle 
 1951-55 (Turner) 

The bodgie's occupation  
Is to stick his cockulation 
Up a widgie 's ventilation  
To increase the population 
Of the coming generation. 

Melbourne, 1962 (Turner) 

with the equally complicated perception of the sexual act of current 
times; 

Sex is when a guy's communication 
Enters a girl's information, 
To increase the population, 
For a younger generation, 
Do you get the information? 
Or do you need a demonstration? 

43 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

It's a man's occupation, 
To stick his copulation, 
In a woman's ventilation, 
To improve the population, 
Of the younger generation. 
I got this information from the Board of Education,  
If you want a demonstration, lie down! 

The comment from the teller of this rhyme to the collector was, that 
he had no idea what it really meant but that it sounded rude. This further 
reinforces the idea that appearance of 'knowledge' is more important 
than the actuality of knowing. 

When considering issues relating to sexual preferences, there were 
only three rhymes the researcher found related to gay and lesbian life-
styles. 

Georgie Porgie pudding and pie,  
Kissed the girls and made them cry, 
When the boys came out to play, He 
kissed them too, 'cos he was gay. 

He put in his thumb, 
And pulled out a bum, 

And said, "What a gay boy am I! 
Little Jack Horner, 
Sat in the corner, 
Eating his Christmas pie, 

and the Barney, purple dinosaur parody, 

I love you, you love me, 
Homo-sex-ual-ity 
People think that we're best friends, 
But really we are lesbians! 

These rhymes were all related by children over eleven years of age, and 
did not appear to be widely recorded. This researcher could not find any 
such references in collections from the past. 

Life Passages . The Susie Saga 
Sutton-Smith (1959) recognised that much of children's folklore is 

the property of girls and also that girls acquire a consciousness of future 
roles earlier than boys do. They often act out these roles in their 

44 



 

JANICE ACKERLE' 

skipping and clapping games. An internationally used example of this is 
the enduring Susie saga. Variants of this rhyme 

have been collected in Australia, Britain, Cyprus, Denmark, 
France, Ireland, Israel, South Africa, Spain and the USA and 
perhaps elsewhere, in at least five languages: English, Danish, 
French, Greek and Spanish. (Arleo, 1999, 115) 

The Susie rhyme traces the life cycle of a female character from 
birth, childhood, courtship, marriage, death and the hereafter. The pro-
gression through different stages involving various rites of passage is 
counterbalanced by the mocking laughter and exaggerated actions that 
accompany each of the levels, undercutting the supposed certainty of 
life's passage. 

The playground texts can be seen as part of an ongoing proc-
ess of interpretations of different domains of discourse which 
have consistently shifting boundaries. (Grugeon, 1999, 114) 

Arleo (1999) examined both the international traditions of the rhyme 
and the poetic, musical and kinetic features. Some of the conclusions 
relevant to this research were the cultural influences on different 
variants of the text. He noted, for example, that in only one version of 
the rhyme (Australian) was there any mention of Susie taking up a ca-
reer: "When Susie was a teacher, a teacher, a teacher, . . " In examining 
the rhymes from the Museum Victoria collection this researcher located 
references to a teacher, as well as a typist and a stripper. 

The timing of pregnancy was also interesting, in that two English 
versions had pregnancy preceding marriage, whereas in the American 
version pregnancy follows marriage. In the Spanish version the rhyme 
begins at the courtship stage and deals with marital conflict and separa-
tion. The death and after-life stages are direct reflections of the particular 
society's cultural and religious beliefs. The American and Danish 
versions conclude with the central character as a ghost; whereas, the 
English and Danish versions explore themes such as heaven, hell and 
resurrection (Arleo, 1999) 

Factor (1988, 175) comments that the Susie game shows "freedom 
from customary propriety," especially seen in the verse 

When Susie was a teenager, a teenager, a teenager,  
She went 'Ohh ahh I lost my bra, 
Left my knickers in my boyfriend's car! 

One version from the Australian Children's Folklore Collection re-
places the reference to 'teenager' with 'stripper. ' The Opies noted that 
 45 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

this game emerged in the late 1960s from an earlier singing game be-
ginning "When I was a Lady" (1985, 458), with possible connections 
back to the nineteenth century (Appendix I). 

The variations in this researcher's collection are as follows 

When Susie was a baby she went wah, wah wah  
When Susie was a toddler she went scribble, scribble, 
 scribble (wobbly walk - action) 
When Susie was a schoolgirl she went Miss, Miss I 
 can't do this (I want to piss) 
When Susie was a teenager she went "Ohh ahh I left 
 my bra (knickers) in my boyfriend's car!" 
When Susie was a mother she went "Rock, rock 
 around the clock" (1,2,3,4 chuck the baby out the 
 door) 
When Susie was a grandma she went knit, knit I lost 

my stitch! (smack, smack, smack)  
When Susie was dead she went—silence. (Whoooo..)  
When Susie was a skeleton she went rattle, rattle. 
 (crackle, crackle, creak, creak) 
When Susie was a ghost she went whooo, whoooo. 

Features of note here are that there is no mention of a career for 
Susie. The traditional pathways of the past are followed; however, the 
suggested actions at the different stages take on a much more bawdy tone 
than the original versions. The suggestion of violence comes in with the 
mother wanting to "chuck the baby out the door" and the grandmother's 
smacking actions. These lines do not appear in any of the other versions 
from other countries that the researcher located. Could this be related in 
anyway to the fact that New Zealand does not have a good record when 
it comes to child abuse? Alternatively, the fact that such cases have been 
more openly discussed than ever before may also be an influencing 
factor. 

A less complicated rhyme following a similar sequence, is the 
common tease when a boy and girl are seen to "like" each other. 

Jack and Jill sitting in a tree, 
K.I.S.S.I.N.G 
First comes love, 
Then comes marriage, 
Then comes the baby in the baby carriage. 

With the modern additions of 

46 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

That's not all 
Now they're drinking 
ALCOHOL 

or 
That's not all 
Baby's playing basketball! 

or 
That's not all, 1,2,3, 
Jill ends up on the D.P.B. (Domestic Purposes Benefit 
for single parents in New Zealand) 

From these present-day examples it can be seen that children are 
very astute observers of adult's social and cultural practices, and will 
readily incorporate these observations in their folklore. 

. Divination 
Divination has long been used as a method of predicting life's pas-

sages. As far back as 1770s a procedure was described of foretelling a 
boy's destiny by counting buttons on a waist coat and chanting 'Sowja, 
sailor, tinker, tailor, gentleman, apothecary, plow-boy, thief..." Opie 
(1959, 363). Similarly young girls determined the character and station 
of their future husbands by counting necklace beads. In the 1950s the 
Opies quote a young schoolgirl 

When you have prunes or something with stones in it at dinner, 
put the stones at the side of your plate and count them. As you 
are counting you find out what kind of man you are going to 
marry by saying, "Tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor, rich man, poor 
man, beggar man, thief," and whatever name you stop at you 
will marry. After doing that you find out what you are going to 
be married in by saying, "Silk, satin, muslin and rags." Then 
you know what kind of house you are going to live in by 
saying, "Big house, small house, pigsty and barn." (Opie, 
1959,363) 

Skipping rhymes of today serve a similar purpose, with the choice 
of partner, and other decisions depending on the trip of the rope. The 
formula usually includes A,B,C,D . . . with bystanders supplying the 
name of the lucky boy. 

From there the rhyme follows a pattern, 

A,B,C,D... 
Will you get married? yes/no 
What will you wear? wedding dress. bikini, nothing. 

(bra, undies, wedding gear) 
47 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

What will your boyfriend wear? singlet, undies, tie, 
 wedding gear. 
Where will you get married? church, beach, toilet. 
 (house, pig sty, toilet, church) 
Where will you go on your honey moon? NZ, Austra- 

lia, USA  
Where will you live? house, pig sty, toilet, church.  
What will your boyfriend wear? singlet, undies, tie, 
 wedding gear 
What does he do? tinker, tailor,soldier, sailor, rich 

man, poor man, beggar man thief 
Will you have babies? yes/no 
How many children will you have? 1,2,3,4...  
What will you have? single, twins triplets, quads.  
Will you split up? yes/no 

Turner's (1978) collection in Cinderella Dressed in Yella (18) con-
tains a lengthy version of this rhyme with many different options given, 
including colour of the house, number of bottles and nappies and the age 
you will be when you die. Turner dates this rhyme from the period 
1900-1973 in Victoria, Australia. The version above, from the re-
searcher's collection, shows a blend of tradition and modernity, with 
historic reference to 'tinker, tailor, soldier, sailor' alongside the more 
modem day reference to marital separation and domestic discord. 

. New Zealand Male Culture 
Most of the rhymes discussed in this section so far relate to the life 

passages for girls and their future roles as wives and mothers. The 
rhymes that reveal the life passages of boys focus on the macho male 
culture, especially in New Zealand, in terms of the rugby and beer cul-
ture and more recently the experimenting with drugs. The following 
rhyme was collected from a group of twelve years old boys and reflects 
the beer drinking culture of adolescence. 

Doh. . . the stuff that buys me beer, 
Ray. . . the bloke that buys me beer, 
Me. . . the guy that drinks me beer, 
Fah. . . a long way to get beer, 
Soh. . . I'll have another beer, 
Lah. . . I'll have another beer, 
Te. . . No thanks, I'm drinking beer, 

That brings us back to 
Doh, ray, me. . . 

48 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

The drug aspect is also incorporated in the following rhymes: 

Po kare kare ana 
I was smoking marijuana,  
I gave it to the teacher,  
She said, "Come here!"  
I said, "No fear! 
1'1l be back next year,  
With a bottle of beer, 
To rub in your hair. " 

Sex, drugs, rock and roll 
Speed, weed, birth control, 
Life's a bitch, then you die, 
Fuck the world, 
Let's all get high! 

Weed is a plant that grows in the ground,  
If God didn't want it, it wouldn't be around.  
So tell all the people, 
Who don't want to get high, 
To shut the fuck up, and give it a try. 

Roll, roll, roll your dope, 
Scrunch it at the end, 
Spank it up, 
And have a smoke, 
Then pass it to a friend. 

The rugby culture and trans-Tasman rivalry is also incorporated in 
rhymes such as 

It's raining, it's pouring, The 
All Blacks are scoring. 

God of nations, 
In the serum, 
Kick the Aussies in the bum.  
If it hurts, serves them right, 
Blow them up with dynamite! 

Both boys and girls use such rhymes to experience possibilities that the 
future may hold for them, while maintaining the protection and security of 
childhood. 

49 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

CHAPTER FIVE 
Conclusion 

This research has investigated the gender issues within the play-
ground rhymes used by New Zealand school children between 1993 and 
2003. Comparisons were made between present day and historical 
collections of playground rhymes. Through the close examination of 
collected rhymes the researcher found that various categories and themes 
emerged. Such trends could be related to current cultural developments, 
while maintaining elements of the traditional from the original version of 
the rhyme. 

Children, as a relatively powerless group in society, use these 
rhymes to comment on and experiment with the boundaries of their 
experiences. The rhymes are often subversive and not always immedi- 
ately obvious to the casual observer. This research explored many of the 
hidden transcripts contained within these rhymes and concluded that 
children use these as an important element in their play lives, as well as a 
means of empowerment and experimentation with language. Just as 
gender itself is socially and culturally determined, so are many of the 
gender issues contained within the playground rhymes examined here. 

There is an undenied necessity for continued scholarship and re-
search in the area of children's folklore. Since the studies of Sutton-
Smith in the fifties and sixties there has been little research in New 
Zealand in children's folklore play. A recent study, looking mainly at 
dialectal variation in the playground vocabulary of New Zealand chil-
dren, carried out through the Victoria University of Wellington by Laurie 
and Winifred Bauer (2002) has resulted in a collection of children's play 
rhymes. The Christchurch College of Education's, National Diploma of 
Children's Literature (1994) has also resulted in the development of a 
comprehensive collection of children's playground rhymes. This 
collection was utilised for the purpose of this study. 

Within New Zealand the area for folklore studies is wide open with 
so many avenues unexplored in terms of the how and why, with much of 
the raw data now available and still in the process of being collected. A 
study of the effects of multi-culturalism on children's folklore would be 
one possibility. The publication of a scholarly collection of playground 
rhymes similar to that published by Turner (1969; 1978) is another area 
of consideration. 

It is important that archival collections are maintained. As well as 
providing valuable insights for the adults that study them, playground 
rhymes also provide children with a link to the past as well as reflecting 
the vibrant forces of the present. 

50 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

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54 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

Appendex I: FuJI-text of Rhymes used in Research 

Page 
No. 

Rhyme text of most commonly recorded 
version Girls Boys Both Total 

11 Row, row, row your boat, 
Gently down the stream, 
Throw your teacher overboard, 
And listen to her scream 

18 10 16 44 

11 Po kare kare ana, 
I had a squashed banana, 
I threw it at the teacher, Alternative 
She said, "Come here!" (It hit her in the eye 
I said, "No fear, She said, "Wah, wah, 
I'll be back in a year, I lost my bra, 
With a bottle of beer, and I don't know 
where 
To wash my hair my knickers are!'') 

11 5 2 18 

  11, 
  32 

Girls are weak. chuck 'em in the creek. 
Boys are strong, like King Kong. 
 
 
Boys play rugby, to get more ugly, 
Girls take showers, to get more powers. 
(Girls go to the gym to get more slim) 
Boys are spastic, made out of plastic) 
Girls are sexy, made out of Pepsi 
Boys are rotten, made out of cotton. 

15 0 0 15 

  13- 
  14, 
  40 

When Susie was a baby, a baby, a baby 
When Susie was a baby she went wah,wah 
wah 
When Susie was a toddler she went scribble, 
scribble, scribble (wobbly walk - action) 
When Susie was a schoolgirl she went Miss, 
Miss I can't do this (I want to piss) 
When Susie was a teenager she went "Ohh 
ahh I left my bra (knickers) in my boy- 
friend's car'" 
When Susie was a mother she went "Rock. 
rock around the clock" (1,2,3,4 chuck the 
baby out the door) 
When Susie was a grandma she went knit, 
knit I lost my stitch! (smack, smack, smack) 
When Susie was dead she went –silence. 
(Whooooo..) 
When Susie was a skeleton she went rattle, 
rattle. (crackle, crackle, creak, creak) 
When Susie was a ghost she went whooo, 
whoooo 

13 0 2 15 

23 My mother, your mother 33 3 3 39 

55 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

 

Lived down the street, 
18,19 Marble Street, 
And every time they had a fight, 
This is what she told me 
Girls go to Mars, to get more bras, 
Boys go to rugby, to get more ugly (and 
other variations).     

23 I'm sexy, I'm cute, 
I'm popular to boot. 
Great looking, great hair, 
The boys will love to stare 
Go, go  go touros 

1 0 0 1 

24 Oh my gosh' I think I broke a nail. 
It's totally for sure. 
I'm gonna need a manicure. 
The sun up there, is shining on my gorgeous 
hair. 
Hey, you! Go home, 
I'm talking on my telephone. 
23,24, I don't know the stupid score! 
Go, go, fight, fight, 
Gee I hope I look all right! 

2 0 0 2 

24 I must, I must increase my bust, 
 
Cos then, cos then, I will attract men, 
And get a job, a job, working as a blob, 
At Jenny Craig, Jenny Craig, 
So they can all catch my plague, 
And get fat, get fat! 
So what do you think of that' 

1 0 0 1 

24 I'm a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world, 
Life's fantastic, I'm made out of plastic, 
I've got rubber hair, purple underwear, 
I take a shower, every half hour, 
Come on Barbie, let's go party, 
Comee on Barbie, lets go party, 
No way, no way! 

1 0 0 1 

24- 
25 

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, 
Goota re bub, she bub, she bub, 
I went upstairs to comb my hair, 
I went back down and the boogie man was 
there. 
I went to school and it was pretty cool. 
I shaved my legs and my face went red. 
I carne back home and my mummy said, 
" Naughty, naughty girl for shaving your 
legs. 
I went upstairs to light the fire, 
Mv balls got stuck in the electric wire. 

4 1 1 6 

56 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

 
I went to the doctor, the doctor said, 
"I'm sorry Mister, but your balls are dead!" 
Turn around, turn around, touch the ground, 
FREEZE! 

    

25 I'm a little Dutch girl (Girl Guide)dressed in 
blue 
These are the things that I must do, 
Bow to the King, 
Curtsey to the Queen. 
Show my undies to the rugby team. 

6 0 2 8 

25 I'm a little angel, 
I don't swear, 
Bugger, bugger, bull shit, 
I don't care! 

2 0 0 2 

26 Apple on a stick. makes me sick. 
Makes my heart beat two forty six, 
Not because you're dirty, 
Not because you're clean, 
Just because you kissed a boy, 
Behind a magazine, 
Boys, boys are no fun, 
Here comes Susie with a mini skirt on, 
She can wibble, she can wobble, 
She can do the splits, 
But I bet you five bucks she can't do this ! 

8 0 0 8 

26 Down in the meadow, 
Where the green grass grows, 
There sat little Mary as sweet as a rose, 
Along came a boy, 
And kissed her on the cheek. 
Shame little Mary! 
Who's your little boyfriend? A.B.C.D...? 

1 0 0 1 

26 

Mummy had a baby, yummy, yummy. 
Daddy is a dentist, gummy, gummy. 
My sister is a show off, honey, honey. 
My brother is a cowboy, bang, bang, boom, 
boom. 
Fifty bullets in my head, 
Turn around, turn around, 
Touch the ground FREEZE! 

1 0 0 1 

26 My name is Andy Pandy, sugar and candy 
Mum's gone crazy, 
Dad's had a baby! 
Do me a favour 
Get lost! 

1 0 0 1 

27 Here comes the bride... 
(Many variants of this rhyme) 

5 1 5 11 

29 Joy to the world, 
The teacher's dead 

6 3 3 12 

57 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

 

We barbequed her head. 
What happened to her body? 
We flushed it down the potty. 
Round and round it goes. 
Round and round it goes. 

    

29 On top of spaghetti, all covered in sand, 
I shot my poor teacher, with a grey rubber 
band, 
I shot her with pleasure, I shot her with 
pride. 
I couldn't have missed her. She was 40 foot 
wide. 
I went to her funeral, I went to her grave, 
Some people threw flowers, I threw a gre- 
nade. 
Her coffin went up, her coffin went down. 
Her coffin went splat, all over the ground. 
I looked in her coffin, she still wasn't dead, 
So I got my bazooka, and shot off her head. 
(Her head went flying, up into the sky, 
Then the All Blacks kicked it, 
and scored a great try) 

7 7 7 21 

29 Glory, glory halleluiah 
Teacher hit me with a ruler. 
Poked her in the chin, 
With a rotten mandarin. 
And her teeth came marchin" ou-ou-out. 

1 0 2 3 

31 My boyfriend gave me an apple, 
My boyfriend gave me a pear. 
My boyfriend gave me a kiss on the lips. 
And threw me down the stairs. 
I gave him back his apple, 
I gave him back his pear, 
I gave him back his kiss on the lips. 
And threw him down the stairs... 
(Many variations to the ending) 

25 0 5 30 

31- 
32 

Underneath the apple tree. 
My boyfriend said to me 
"Kiss me, hug me, tell me that you love me" 
Underneath the apple tree, 
My boyfriend said to me, 
"Get lost!" 

6 0 2 8 

33 Billy, had a ten foot willy. 
He showed it to the lady next door. 
She thought it was a snake. 
And hit it with a rake, 
And now it's only five foot four 

0 2 0 2 

34 Ellie I, Ellie I. 
Chickalie. chickalie, 

1 0 0 1 

58 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

 
Went to California, jumped in a lake, 
Swallowed a snake, and came out with a 

bellyache. 
    

34 My name is Nicholas, Picholas, 
Don't be ridiculous, 
Why don't you do me a favour, 
Swim in the lake, swallow a snake, 

And then come back with a bellyache 

8 1 1 10 

34 Cinderella, dressed in yella, 
Went upstairs to kiss her fella, 
Made a mistake, and kissed a mistake, 
Then came back with a bellyache. 
How many doctors did it take? 1,2,3,4...? 
(On the way her panties busted, 
How many people were disgusted? 

1,2,3,4...?) 

47 3  50 

34 My boyfriend's name is Jackie, 
He comes from Taranaki, 
With a pimple on his nose, 
And big long toes, 
And this is how my story goes, 
One day when I went walking, 
1 heard my boyfriend talking, 
To the prettiest girl with the strawberry curl, 
And this is what he said ,said, said. 
I L..O.V.E. you -love you, 
I K..I.S.S. you - kiss you. 
So I jumped in the lake and swallowed a 
snake, 
And then came home with a belyache. 

10 0 2 12 

35 Hickory, dickory dock… (Many variants of 
this rhyme) 

1 7 2 10 

36 Roses are red... (Many variants of this rhyme) 
 
 

 
 
 

13 16 10 39 

36 Jack and Jill... (Many variants of this rhyme) 10 9 7 26 
36 Waltzing Matilda, who bloody killed her? 

Lying in the grass, with a dagger up her 
arse. 
Along came granny, chopped off her fanny, 
Took her to the movies, chopped off her boo- 
bies, 
Took her to bed and chopped off her head, 
And that was then end of  Waltzing Matilda. 

4 4 8 16 

36 Ashes to ashes, 
Dust to dust, 
If it wasn’t for the girls, 

Our balls would rust. 

0 2 0 2 

36 When 1 die, bury me, 
Hag! my nuts (tits) from a cherry tree, 

1 2 0 3 

59 



 

GENDER ISSUES IN THE PLAYGROUND RHYMES 

 When they're ripe, take a bite, 
Don't blame me if you fart all night.     

37 1+1 the fun has just begun in the bedroom, 
2+2 he's up to my shoe in the bedroom, 
3+3 he's up to my knee in the bedroom 
4+4 he's shut the door in the bedroom, 
5 +5 he's fucking me alive in the bedroom, 
6+6 he's licking my tits in the bedroom, 
7+7 he's this feels like heaven in the bed- 
room, 
8+8 the doctor's at the gate in the bedroom, 
9+9 the twins are doing fine in the bedroom, 
10+10 let's do it all again in the bedroom 

1 0 0 1 

37 Running down the road, knocking on the 
door, 
Fuck, dam, son of a bitch, couldn't find a 
whore. 
Finally found a whore, she was tall and thin, 
Fuck, dam, son of a bitch, couldn't get it in. 
Finally got it in, wiggled it around, 
Fuck, dam, son of a bitch, 
Couldn't get it out. 
Finally got it out, it was red and sore, 
The moral of the story is, 

   Never fuck a whore! 

0 1 0 1 

38 Georgie Porgie... (Many variants of this  
   rhvme) 

6 3 3 12 

38 Little Jack Horner... (Many variants of this 
rhvme) 

2 1 1 4 

38 1 love you, you love me, 
Homo-sex-ual-ity 
People think that we're best friends, 
But really we are lesbians. 
(Other variants related to Barney the purple 

   dinosaur) 

2 1 3 6 

41 X and Y sitting in a tree, 
K.I.S.S.I.N.G. 
First comes love, 
Then comes marriage, 
Then comes the baby in the baby carriage. 

28 6 14 48 

42 A.B.C.D. (divination) 
Will you get married? yes/no 
What will you wear? (Many variations in 
responses throughout rest of this rhyme) 
What will your boyfriend wear? 
Where will you get married? 
Where will you go on your honeymoon? 
Where will you live? 

   What will vour boyfriend wear? 

54 0 12 66 

60 



 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

 

What does he do? 
Will you have babies? yes/no 
How many children will you have? 1,2,3,4. 
What will you have? single, twins triplets, 
quads. 
Willyvou split up? yes/no 

    

43 Doh... the stuff that buys me beer, 
Ray… the bloke that buys me beer, 
Me... the guy that drinks me beer, 
Fah... a long way to get beer, 
Soh... I'll have another beer, 
Lah... I'll have another beer, 
Te?... No thanks, I'm drinking beer, 
That brings us back to 
Doh, ray, me... 

0 1 0 1 

43 Po kare, kare, ana, 
I was smoking marijuana.. 

0 2 0 2 

43 Sex, drugs, rock and roll, 
Weed, speed, birth control. 
Life's a bitch and then you die, 
Fuck the world, let's all get high. 

0 1 0 1 

43 Roll, roll, roll your dope, 
Scrunch it at the end, 
Spank it up, 
And have a smoke, 
And pass it to a friend. 

0 6 1 7 

43 Weed is a plant, that grows in the ground, 
If God didn't want it, it wouldn't be around. 
So tell all the people, who don't want to get 
high. 
To shut the fuck up, and give it a try. 

0 1 0 1 

44 It's raining, it's pouring, 
The All Blacks are scoring. 0 1 0 1 

44 God of Nations, in the serum, 
Kick the Aussies up the bum. 
If it hurts, serves them right, 
Blow them up with dynamite! 

0 2 0 2 

44 

Fitz, Mers, Cullen, Bull, 
 
If you support the Aussies, 
You're a bloody fool! 

0 1 0 1 

  356 103 114 573 

6] 



 
 

JANICE ACKERLEY 

APPENDIX 2 
1. WHEN I WAS A LADY 

When I was a lady, 
A lady, a lady— 
When I was a lady, 
Oh! then, oh! then, oh! then, 
It was hey oh! this way,  
This way, this way; 
It was hey oh! this way,  
Oh! then, oh! then, oh! then. 

When I got married, 
Got married, got married—[etc.] 

When I got a baby, 
A baby, a baby—[etc.] 
 
When my baby cried, 
Cried, cried—[etc.] 
When my baby died,  
Died, died—[etc.] 

When I had a bustle, 
A bustle, a bustle—[etc.] 

When my bustle fell, 
Fell, fell—[etc.] 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 

I wish to thank the following for their assistance with the completion of 
this study: 

Sue Clancy of Charles Sturt University whose guidance was 
invaluable in focussing me on the requirements of this study. 

John McKenzie, Director of the Children's Literature Centre at the 
Christchurch College of Education, whose foresight in the 
establishment of the National Diploma in Children's Literature 
introduced me to the fascinating world of children's folklore. His 
permission was also granted, on behalf of the Christchurch College of 
Education, to use the vital resource of the New Zealand Children's 
Folklore Collection, so essential to this study. 
 Moya McFadzean, from Museum Victoria, Melbourne, Australia, 
for providing me with rhymes from the Australian Children's Folklore 
Collection. 

Dr. Derek Syme (Ashburton College) and my colleagues at 
Ashburton College and especially to my family for providing the 
support and encouragement all the way along this journey. 

62 



 

THE UGLY DUCKLING, HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSON: 
A STORY OF TRANSFORMATION 

ANITA L. GAMBOS 

Introduction 

The Ugly Duckling is a small story that offers universal hope to the 
disenfranchised. Here, a misfit, rejected by family and society, makes the 
microcosmic journey of all who seek self-actualization. In Fairy Tales 
and the Art of Subversion, Jack Zipes notes in his chapter, "Hans 
Christian Andersen and the Discourse of the Dominated": 

(The Ugly Ducking) has generally been interpreted as a parable of 
Andersen's own success story because the naturally gifted 
underdog survives a period of "ugliness" to reveal its innate beauty. 
(87) 

Therefore, to understand the significance of the transformation, from 
ugly to beautiful, it is important to view the passage against the backdrop 
of Andersen's life. 

Andersen's Life Influences 

Hans Christian Andersen was clearly a product of the nineteenth 
century, a period of broad-sweeping changes in both world and national 
views, when tenets of biology, eugenics and race became subjects of 
public discourse. 

Andersen was born to poverty in 1805 in the old provincial Danish 
town of Odense. The son of a cobbler who loved books and taught him-
self and his son to read, Andersen grew up hearing his father say that he 
(the father) was of aristocratic origin. Andersen's mother worked as a 
washerwoman; she was uneducated and superstitious, but introduced 
Andersen to folklore. He was also greatly influenced by his grandmother, 
a grounds person at Odense Hospital, a local workhouse. Andersen spent 
a great deal of time there listening to elderly, female inmates who 
repeated old stories and the traditional folk tales of Denmark. These 
made a deep and lasting impression. 

Andersen was a poor student and received little education. He spent 
much of his time alone writing short plays and dreaming of becoming an 
actor. Encouraged by his parents, he composed his own fairy tales and 
arranged puppet shows. Andersen was fortunate to live in one of the few 
towns outside of Copenhagen that housed a public theater. He often 
accompanied his father to the town's playhouse. 



 

THE UGLY DUCKLING 

When he was 11, Andersen's life was seriously disrupted when his 
father died, and the family became even more destitute. He was forced to 
go to work. For a short time, he apprenticed to a weaver and a tailor, and 
also worked at a tobacco factory. At the age of 14, he fled to Co-
penhagen to find his way in the theater. During his first years in Co-
penhagen, Andersen fought to gain a toehold in the theater as a ballet 
dancer, actor and singer. Eventually, he succeeded in becoming associ-
ated with the Royal Theater, but had to leave it when his voice began to 
change. 

One of the directors of the Royal Theater, an influential government 
official, Jonas Collins, provided Andersen the means to be educated and 
eventually gain admission to Copenhagen University. These educational 
experiences broadened Andersen's perspective and put him in touch with 
the dramatic social changes of his day. Zipes notes: 

Throughout the western world, a more solidified bourgeois 
public sphere was establishing itself and replacing feudal sys-
tems, as was clearly the case in Denmark. (76) 

It might be said that Andersen in his subsequent life became living proof 
of the social mobility made possible by the bourgeois democracy that 
arose after the signing of Denmark's constitution in 1849. 

After his school years, Copenhagen at last came to mean something 
positive for Andersen, and he began his writing in earnest. The 
University of Southern Denmark's Center on Hans Christian Andersen 
notes on its website: 

Here the proletarian Andersen acquired the culture and educa-
tion associated with bourgeois circles in the Golden Age that 
encompassed the last years of absolute monarchy. . . . Ander-
sen' s entire production of tales is, as it were, suspended be-
tween these two poles. . . 

Having broken with his family and social class, but not yet a member of 
the moneyed class, Andersen understood that he could realize his 
potential and gain greater social standing only through the world of art, 
the only outlet the times provided. The Center's web site also remarks: 

Here, too, he came to know both the bourgeois upper class of 
the capital and the very lowest stratum of its proletariat. He 
came to know the fight for survival at the subsistence level and 
the bitterness of being a supplicant dependent on the good will 
of others. 

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It is Zipes' s opinion that this duality produced deep self-doubts in 
Andersen that impelled him to constantly reprove his value. 

. . . to show his aptitude and disposition were noble and that 
he belonged to the elect. This is apparent in the referential sys-
tem built into most of his tales which are discourses on the 
dominated. (79) 

His friends were patrons rather than intimates, and his constant sense of 
indebtedness to them weighed heavily and perpetuated his isolation. 
Throughout his life, from his own perspective and despite his fame as a 
writer, Andersen was the dominated subject within the dominant social 
circles. Andersen never felt himself to be fully accepted by any group. He 
lived as an outsider, a loner, unable to enjoy the deep attachments and 
obvious social identification that a wife and family would have bestowed. 

Perhaps it is for this reason that he began to travel extensively. He 
considered Germany to be his second home but was also comfortable in 
Italy. His journeying paved the way for international literary fame as his 
first work published in 1829 described his trek from Holmens Canal to 
the east point of Amager, a fantastic tale set in the style of German 
Romantic writers. The work was well received. Andersen was considered 
to be the most widely traveled Danish writer of his day. He spent over 
nine years of his life outside Denmark. 

Andersen's literary fame grew rapidly from the mid-1830s when his 
novels became widely accepted in Germany. However, from 1839 
onwards, it was his fairy tales that earned him acclaim until his death in 
1875. Imbedded in the straightforward narrative easily understood by 
children are subtler and deeper meanings to which adults respond. It is 
to these symbols and meanings that attention is next turned. 

Understanding Tale Symbolism and Meaning 

The Oxford English Dictionary defines symbol as something that 
stands for, represents or denotes something else; a material object rep-
resenting or taken to represent something immaterial or abstract, as a 
being, idea, quality or condition. Meaning is defined as that which is 
intended to be or actually is expressed or indicated; the intent, the spirit. 

Archeologists, seeking to discover historic and cultural meaning 
from artifacts, offer an evolution of symbolic capacity. The Auckland 
Center for the Arts notes that our physical and mental capacity for 
symbolic thought and its representation in language is the result of evo-
lution. The ability to reason, plan and communicate in symbols sets us 

65 



 

THE UGLY DUCKLING 

apart from other animals. This generates our culture capacity. Therefore, 
the ability to derive symbolic meaning from tales helps preserve and 
expand the cultural underpinnings that link us all. This is one of 
storytelling's most important functions. 

On an individual level, different cognitive maps guide personal ac-
tions. People sense/sample the world and then interpret! give meaning to, 
according to these cognitive maps. Just as language has an internal 
organization called grammar, cognitive maps are given organization and 
structure through sets of related symbols and meaning. Folk tales, fairy 
tales, myths, lore, are the organizing principles of cognitive maps. 
Therefore, through either the collective or the individual pathways, the 
symbolism of tales helps to organize the internal operating systems both 
for culture in general and for its singular components. Thus, the 
Auckland Center proposes that "approaches that look at symbols and 
meaning may generate coherence and sense." 

In Interpretation of Fairy Tales, Marie Louise von Franz speaks to 
four basic cognitive maps for those interpreting fairy tales. 

Actually you can interpret a fairy tale with any of the four 
functions of consciousness. The thinking type will point out 
the structure and the way in which all the motifs connect. The 
feeling type will put them into value order (a hierarchy of val-
ues) which is also completely rational. With the feeling func-
tion, a good and complete fairy tale interpretation can be 
made. The sensation type will just look at the symbols and 
amplify them. The intuitive will see the whole package (of 
fairy tale) in its oneness, so to speak; he will be most gifted in 
showing that the whole fairy tale is not a discursive story but is 
really one message split up into many facets. (24) 

The cognitive map of this report will follow an intuitive interpretation of 
the major symbols and meaning of The Ugly Duckling. 

Symbolic Analysis of The Ugly Duckling 

From the very first paragraph, story symbols that evoke multiple 
meanings are plentiful. The opening paragraph that describes the long 
golden days of summer, sweet air, tall com and freshly-cut hay leads the 
reader to a pastoral/earth setting, a time of fullness and ripening, a time 
of maturation after quickening. But, beyond the open sunlight, there are 
the shaded deeps (cool lakes of the unconscious where new life can be 
born.) Near the lake shore, storks (symbols of fertility and birth) wade. 
Birds (symbols of freedom that fly with new hopes and dreams of the 
future) chatter overhead. 

Even the manmade objects like the old mansion surrounded by a 

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ANITA GAMBOS 

moat are contained and defined by the watery unconscious. Along the 
stone walls of the mansion, "huge burdock plants with leaves as big as 
platters grow thick and tall. Beneath their leaves it was like a secret 
room." (It is interesting to note that burdock leaves are usually heart-
shaped near the bottom of the plant and egg-shaped at the top.) In this 
womb-like place, recreating the ancient mysteries, the mother duck waits 
for her eggs to hatch, each egg enfolding its own primeval, cosmic 
universe. 

After the ducklings begin to hatch, "the mother let them look as 
much as they liked, for green is good for the eyes." (Through the con-
nection with the green, fertile earth, all living things are made whole, and 
life is supported.) 

The mother duck must still sit on the nest to hatch the last and 
largest egg. An older duck (crone/elder/shaman) cautions the mother 
duck that the egg could be a turkey egg (note the quality of Trickster), 
clearly inferior in the animal hierarchy. The mother duck was encouraged 
to make sure that the product of this larger egg could swim (navigate the 
world emotionally.) 

When the Ugly Duckling hatched, he (advisedly a "he" in this case) 
was gray, not a golden yellow like the other ducklings. This gray 
duckling was suspect, "in the gray zone," not fully accepted, but not yet 
rejected, while the yellow ducklings, the color of sun and summer and 
life, were perceived as the "real ducklings." 

After a swim in the moat (a journey of initiation), the mother duck 
cautions the ducklings to beware of the "mean old cat" living the barn-
yard. The cat can represent the feminine aspect of the personality, the 
unexplored unconscious. It is interesting to note that after the ducklings 
had proven themselves by performing in the moat (masculine activity), 
they were now being cautioned to pay attention to the feminine principle, 
the aspect of being. They could even find it to be dangerous. 

The exhortation to pay attention to appearances is primary. The 
mother duck equates her worth to the perceived value that others place on 
her "well bred" ducklings and, commensurately, on her success as a 
mother. She instructs them to keep their toes turned out properly (be 
outward turning and explore.) 

Particularly evocative is her social instruction to bow to the re-
spected older female duck who is of Chinese heritage (ancient wis- 
dom). She is also addressed as "Your Grace," a designation of nobility. 
She notes that the older duck has a bit of red cloth on her leg so that 
everyone would "take notice of her and treat her with respect." 

Red is the color of blood, of kinship and, in some cultures, of ini-
tiation. (The ducklings were to be presented to their new tribe.) More 
directly, in the Chinese culture, red is the color of good fortune and 
abundance. (By honoring the duck of greater social standing, honor and 
riches might also be conferred on the mother duck and her ducklings.) 

67 



 

THE UGLY DUCKLING 

It was the old duck who commented on what a nice family the 
mother duckling had, but notably excluded the Ugly Duckling from this 
evaluation. She even went so far as to say "too bad you can't start over 
again with him." (Abundance will not come to the Ugly Ducking in his 
current form.) 

On that first day, the barnyard animals' abuse of the Ugly Ducking 
began. (The barnyard can be equated to the town square, the gathering 
place of the lower classes where justice was dispensed.) Though the cat 
never made an appearance, the chickens and ducklings shouted that "The 
cat should grab you," an indication that they wanted some super natural 
force to intervene in the destruction/transformation of the Ugly Duckling. 
Early one morning (at the beginning of his quest), the Ugly Duckling ran 
away. Almost immediately, he encountered animals in the wild and 
assumed they ran/flew away because he was so ugly. The cognitive map 
he carried had to be tested in the wild (the subconscious) to gain the truth 
of his own inner map. Thus, he began a hero's journey, with the hero's 
task of encountering and overcoming his demons. 

He first met wild birds who flew away. (His hopes, his dreams had 
changed.) Next, he met wild ducks who thought him strange and, curi-
ously, said that he could remain in the marsh as long as he didn't marry 
into their family. (This is the psychological distancing device used to 
guard and protect the status quo and keep the tribe intact.) 

One morning, he met a pair of young, wild geese who invited him to 
join them on their side of the marsh. They acknowledged his ugliness 
(differences), but were willing to include him in their community. 
(Through younger, less stultified beings, the order of the status quo 
begins to weaken, and messages from the unconscious arise. Hints are 
given to what is possible.) 

Unfortunately, just as the clues are evidenced, a hunter shoots the 
wild geese as they fly from the rushes. (So, too, are many new ideas 
gunned down aggressively when they land in the sights of the guns of 
established thinking and tried-and-true systems like the proverbial "old 
boys network. ") 

It was when a huge dog, "its eyes gleaming horribly," came upon the 
Ugly Duckling, pushing his dog's nose right into the duckling's face, then 
departing, that the Ugly Duckling decided to leave the swamp. (In 
ancient Babylon, the goddess of Fate is represented by a dog, and often, 
gods accompanying traveling goddesses took the forms of dogs. The dog 
is a sign of protection and power.) It is interesting that it was the 
appearance of a dog that precipitated the Ugly Duckling's hurrying out of 
relatively known safety to the truly unknown. 

Having left the marsh (the world in-between the solid land and the 
watery depths), the Ugly Duckling came to a "sad-looking little farm-
house" which housed an old woman, a cat and a hen. Not seeing well, the 
old woman thought that the duckling was a hen and put him on a 

68 



 

ANITA GAMBOS 

nest in hope of his laying eggs. (Many will not see who we really are.) 
After a period of time, "the duckling sat in the comer feeling very, very 
sad. (His feelings began to match the sad environment.) Thoughts of 
fresh air and sunshine came to his mind, and he was filled with an ex-
traordinary longing to swim" (to return to his true nature). 

When he expressed his desire to the hen and cat, they were scornful. 
They encouraged him to be grateful for "a warm room and pleasant 
company." But the Ugly Duckling left the sure comforts of the poor 
farmhouse (where he would have been safe but unrealized), and set out 
on his own path. (The hero could not be seduced from his quest.) He 
came to a beautiful pond (an enclosed pool of emotional content, where 
he could explore his identity). He tried swimming near the other ducks, 
but they turned away. (The journey to self-realization is a solitary one.) 

Winter (the period of frozen time and inward space, the dark night 
of the soul) was coming. A raven (the prophetic bird of death) squawked. 
(Our hero was about to go through the transformative death to self.) One 
evening, he saw a flock of swans fly overhead, and though he did not 
know their identity, he called out to them and felt strangely excited. (His 
intuition and his instincts were waking up, and he was beginning to know 
himself differently.) His voice was so loud and so shrill it frightened him. 
(He was afraid of embracing this new voice/identity that was emerging.) 

Then he dived down to the bottom of the pond (the unconscious) and 
"when he came up again, he was even more excited than before." (He 
was willing to engage deeply for only a moment, but a moment was 
enough to fire his imagination and keep him alive during the upcoming 
wintry trial. It gave him a hint to his most secret, and his truest identity.) 

Winter came. "The duckling had to swim round and round in the 
water to keep it from freezing right up. But every night the pool in which 
he swam grew smaller and smaller." (Self-actualization is not gained 
through a mental process. Though our minds go "round and round," 
transformation happens only when the circuitous thoughts get smaller and 
smaller, as we tire of the mind's game and let it stop.) "At last he froze 
fast into the pond. " (We surrender to our fate, the outward, seemingly 
constricting construct arising from our deepest unconscious.) 

It was a peasant (someone of the land) who found the duckling, 
"broke up the ice with his wooden clog" (a strong, sturdy shoe indicat-
ing that the duckling was headed in a new direction) and carried the 
little ducking home to his wife (the feminine principle accessed fully 
only when we allow ourselves to be carried along.) 

The peasant's children who wanted to play with him made the Ugly 
Duckling "afraid they might hurt him and he fluttered away." (Though 
not necessarily malignant, we tend to be afraid of the primal, previ-
ously-unknown forces that present themselves and flee from them emo- 

69 



 

THE UGLY DUCKLING 

tionally lest we be harmed.) The duckling flew into the milk (the sub-
stance of creation,) butter (a source of richness and abundance,) and 
flour (a distillation of earth energy.) 

Finally, he darted out of the open door (means of escape from our 
darkest parts) and "lay exhausted in the new-fallen snow." (Having 
courage to face his inner genius which is just as frightening as facing the 
demons, the duckling comes to the neutral place of inner stasis where 
transformation happens.) He drags himself to the reeds at the edge of the 
frozen pond (suspended between two worlds where his mind no longer 
works) and survives the winter. 

When Spring came (the time of rebirth, renewal and igniting of the 
light), the ducking "woke to find the sky bright and the larks (harbingers 
of new life) singing." He found that his wings were stronger and carried 
him swiftly away. (He objectified this new found strength not yet 
realizing that it was a part of him.) 

The duckling found himself in a large garden (a place of spiritual 
growth and healing; renewal of energy and focus) where "apple trees 
blossomed (death and rebirth, the fruit of the Tree of Life) and sweet-
smelling lilacs (rich, perfumed, sensory conveyors of new life and tan-
talizing possibilities) dangle their long branches over the waters of a 
lake." (Larger that his former pond, the Ugly Duckling now claims a 
larger space for himself.) 

"Right ahead of him, out of the leafy shadows, came three beautiful 
white swans." (Emerging from the unconscious into the light of day, the 
duckling sees his desire embodied.) He felt a strange sadness (mourning 
and letting go of the hero's journey space) and determined to be with 
them "even though they will peck me to death because I am so ugly." 
Though he feared personal harm and rejection (as he was living in his 
old paradigm), he preferred death to winter's isolation or a return to is 
former life. (Once there is transformation, there is no turning back.) 

When the duckling bowed his head to the water, he saw his reflec-
tion (the outward manifestation of the inner transformation that had 
taken place during the solitary winter). For the first time, he was then 
able to see himself for who he truly had become. "It did not matter that 
he was born in a duck's nest. He was hatched from a swan's egg!" This 
time, he did not go round and round in his head in fruitless mental ex-
ercise. Instead, "the three lovely swans circled round and round and 
stroked him gently with their beaks." (He made the transition from his 
head to his heart. For this he was rewarded.) 

Some little children (reflection of his newly-found ego; he was not 
afraid of them as he was the peasant's children) came into the garden (the 
protected space) and threw bits of bread (the foundational nourishment 
of life). Note that three ingredients that previously he had fled from in 
fear—milk, butter and flour—now, in the fire of his transfor- 

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ANITA GAMBOS 

mation, had become bread, something that could sustain him). The outer 
response (to his inward self acceptance) came from the smallest child. 
"Look! A new swan! The new one is the prettiest one of all." 

The old swans (those who had made a similar journey) bowed their 
heads in agreement. (Instead of his bowing his head to the old barnyard 
duck, these elegant creatures were now bowing to him.) "This made the 
duckling feel quite shy, and he tucked his head under his wing. (Initially, 
we are not always comfortable with the changes that transformation 
brings and sometimes "hide out. ") 

"His heart filled with joy, and he ruffled his feathers and raised his 
slender neck, for he had never dreamed of so much happiness when he 
was an ugly duckling." (Having once been bitten in the neck by the 
chickens, and receiving the necessary wound that initiated the quest, the 
duckling now stretches his elegant neck and claims his new swan self- 
identity. The hero's journey is ended. ) 

Autobiographical Parallels to Andersen's Life 

Andersen fled from his home to escape poverty and social status. 
Though born in the slums, Andersen always believed himself to be 
misplaced, an unacknowledged aristocrat, a beautiful swan. He suffered 
at the hands of the "barnyard animals," those lesser childhood beings 
who wounded him by their taunts about his appearance and his manner-
isms. Though the trappings changed, and he was later adopted by the 
wealthy Collin family, Andersen was always out to prove to others (and 
to remind himself) that he really had the right, despite his poor birth 
circumstances, to "live in the large garden" of his life. He always wanted 
"the little people" to exclaim at his talent and honor him for his 
aristocratic spirit. 

There is little mention made of Andersen's mother in his many 
biographical sketches, though his father and grandmother play promi-
nently. In the tale, the mother duckling is resigned to his oddness and 
gives the duckling a brief chance to fit into the family. But, she quickly 
aligns with public opinion when family and neighbors turn against the 
Ugly Duckling. Though not explicitly stated, one wonders how much of 
this treatment is autobiographical as well. Andersen's family and friends 
could not have been happy to have been so deliberately left behind. The 
tale even describes the Ugly Duckling's family as "cruel." 

The poultry yard scene is interesting. Clearly, the mother duck sees 
herself and her family as more distinguished than the chickens, roosters 
and geese, but not as distinguished as the elder China duck. Andersen 
shows his bias here for hierarchy the titled, the pedigreed, qualities that 
he obviously lacks. Zipes notes: 

7I 



 

THE UGLY DUCKLING 

A dominated voice of his narration does not condemn his for-
mer social class, rather Andersen loses contact with it by de-
nying the rebellious urges of his class within himself and mak-
ing compromises that affirmed the rightful domination of the 
middle class ethic. . . . (Andersen) rarely suggested alternatives 
or rebellion (in his tales.) Rather, he placed safety before 
idealism and chose moral compromise over moral outrage, in-
dividual comfort and achievement over collective struggle and 
united goals. He aimed for identification with the power estab-
lishment that humiliates subjects rather than opposition to au-
tocracy to put an end to exploitation through power. (83 & 84) 

Andersen was not particularly interested in changing the system, but 
in changing himself to fit into the system. This is further evidenced in the 
instructions that the mother duck gives before the first barnyard foray 
when she tells her ducklings that the world is a place of squabbling and 
snapping. She implies that it is necessary to accept the world the way it 
is. The goal is not to try to change the world, but to hurry past any frays 
that are encountered and survive by looking good. 

Going out into the world and meeting with other creatures who re-
jected the Ugly Duckling, who tried to use him, or who offered him help 
have probable parallels to Andersen's international travels. In seeking out 
the literati of his time, Andersen seemed to be seeking out "those of his 
own kind." He did not return to his birth home, but, instead, searched for 
outward validation of self-worth. 

Like the Ugly Duckling, Andersen was slow to see himself as a 
member of the company of swans. The ending of The Ugly Duckling is 
like Anderson's cry for the world's accreditation. He wants endless con-
firmation that despite his poor beginnings, he had become a true swan-
and not just a beautiful swan, but the best of them all. 

The story of The Ugly Duckling viewed from the perspective of 
Andersen's life is a tale of one who achieved his dream, but who then 
spent a lifetime trying to believe it. 

Transformation Themes in The Ugly Duckling 

The number three is frequently repeated in the story. The duckling 
left the protection of the marsh on the third day. Three dwelled in the 
small farmhouse (old woman, cat and hen). The duckling flew in a panic 
into three household ingredients (milk, butter and flour). Some character 
identification can be made with the Maiden/Mother/Crone, the Triple 
Goddess archetype, as the reader watches the duckling from hatching to 
maturity. After the winter, the Ugly Duckling was surrounded by three 
swans. His transformation occurred in the third season. Three is the 
number of completion, of perfection, the number of 
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ANITA GAMBOS 

integrated divinity. 
Three also mirrors the death-resurrection cycle found in many re-

ligions and traditions. It is also embodied in the three alchemical phases 
of transformation where the crude prima material is transformed into 
gold. von Franz describes the three-fold alchemical process as pro-
gressing through the negredo, the Latin word for the blackness of the 
material when subjected to fire; the albedo, the white substance which 
becomes silver when washed, and the rubedo (the red) which through 
further heating turns into gold. 

The albedo signifies the individual's first clear awareness of the 
unconscious... It means the cool, detached attitude, a stage 
where things look remote and vague, as though seen in the 
moonlight. In the albedo, therefore, it is said that the feminine 
and the moon are ruling. It also means a receptive attitude 
towards the unconscious. "Washing off is the ordeal of coming 
to terms with the shadow; whereas the former stage, the 
negredo marks the first terrible facing of the shadow which is 
torture, and should be followed by working on and differenti-
ating one's inferior side. The alchemists call this "the hard 
work." With the progress of the albedo, the main stream is re-
lieved. Then simple heating changes the albedo into the rubedo, 
which is ruled by the sun and heralds a new state of 
consciousness. (117) 

In The Ugly Duckling, the negredo is the period during the darkness 
of the marsh and the subsequent "walkabout" of experience. The albedo 
is the time of frozen white winter, and the rubedo is the rush of blood, 
the emergence of sun in the return of spring, the season of trans-
formation. 

Finally, in A Psychiatric Study of Myths and Fairy Tales, Julius 
Heuscher notes: 

It is admittedly an oversimplification to reduce the basic chal-
lenge to our evolution to three stages: one, progressive feeling 
of loss of unity with our (spiritual) origins; two, gaining 
awareness of our identity in the course of contact with the ma-
terial world; and three, eventual synthesis on a higher plane. 
(95) 

These three stages are congruent with the alchemical motif already de-
scribed. 

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THE UGLY DUCKLING 

Role of the Mother/Stepmother Figure in The Ugly Duckling 

Jacqueline Schectman, in The Stepmother in Fairy tales, makes in-
teresting observations pertinent to the role of the tale duckling. 

The stepmother. . . is emblematic of whole family systems 
gone awry in the face of inevitable growth and change. To 
know the stepmother. . . is to understand her in the context of 
relationship and the stages of her family life. (100) 

The mother duck is rust introduced when she is nesting, waiting for 
her eggs to hatch. "She had been sitting a long time, or so it seemed to 
her, and she missed the company of all the other ducks." After the other 
eggs hatched, she realized that the biggest one of all still remained 
unhatched. She complains that she is "so tired of waiting," but settles to 
do just that. The mother duckling seems content in her nesting until an 
elder duck raises doubts about the real nature of the large egg. The 
mother duck's response is, "But I've already waited so long. I may as 
well wait a little longer," reflecting the mother duck's concern about her 
time investment, but not necessarily about her duckling. 

When the first ducklings hatch, she quacks at them for maternal 
identification, and they respond with the predictable peeps. However, 
when the Ugly Duckling finally hatches, she "just looked at him" won-
dering about his true identity. Her first thought is, "Into the water he'll 
go, even if have to push him in myself." From the very beginning, the 

 mother duckling was worried about how the Ugly Duckling would reflect    
 on her. 

During the first swim, when she saw how well the Ugly Duckling 
"uses his legs and how straight he holds himself," she concluded that "he 
is my own child after all, and really not so ugly when you look at him 
properly." Though not indicative of unconditional love, the mother duck 
evidences at least some maternal acceptance. 

Before the ducklings enter the barnyard, the mother duck explains 
how to look good and behave correctly so that they are considered to be 
a fine, well-bred family, and she, then, is deemed to be a good mother. 
Soon after they enter, the Ugly Duckling is attacked by the chickens. The 
mother duck cries, "Leave him alone! He's doing no harm." She even 
defends him to the old China duck, "He is good tempered and he swims 
as well as the others. And I am sure he will turn out all right." 

Andersen states ominously, "But that was only the first day." Af-
terwards, the Ugly Duckling's troubles grew until even his own brothers 
and sisters chased him and made fun of him. At this point, "the mother 
duck looked at him sadly and wished he were far away." 

That is the last the reader hears of the mother duck as she is not 
mentioned after the Ugly Duckling runs away. One can only hope in 

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ANITA GAMBOS 

Schectman's words that 

. . . in becoming who they truly are, her (stepmother's) chil-
dren bring a necessary healing to the home. (101) 

In The Drama of the Gifted Child: The Search for the True Self, Alice 
Miller explores in detail the mother-child dynamic. In treating children, 
she states: 

If we start from the premise that a person's whole development 
(and his balance, which is based on it) is dependent on the way 
his mother experienced his expression of needs and sensations 
during his first days and weeks of life, then we must assume 
that it is here that the beginning of a later tragedy might be set. 
If a mother cannot take pleasure in her child as he is but must 
have him behave in a particular way, then the first value 
selection takes place for the child. Now "good" is differentiated 
from "bad," "nice" from nasty," and "right" from "wrong." 
Against this background will follow all his further valuations of 
himself. (Italics are Alice Miller's) (85) 

Given that The Ugly Duckling is a semi-autobiographical tale and so few 
facts are available about his mother, the conclusions are obvious. That is 
why the Ugly Duckling's flight from the barnyard and subsequent 
solitary winter were so critical. As Miller states, 

His plight is no doubt the result of social pressures, but these do 
not have their effect on his psyche through abstract knowledge; 
they are firmly anchored in his earliest affective experience with 
his mother. Thus his problems cannot be solved with words, but 
only through experience-not merely corrective experiences as an 
adult but, above all, through a conscious experience of his early 
fear of his beloved mother's contempt and his subsequent 
feelings of indignation and sadness. (104) 

Mothers who derive their own value and self-worth by vicariously 
living their children's lives can create real tragedies. These women, 
having never received nurturance from their own mothers, create another 
generation of emotionally-truncated individuals, another tragic 
reenactment of lack and isolation. 

Until the gifted child, the true swan, takes the first step out of the 
barnyard and into the marsh to begin the hero's journey of transforma-
tion, nothing changes for the individual or for the mother. Miller notes, 

75 



 

THE UGLY DUCKLING 

In order to become whole we must try, in a long process, to 
discover our own personal truth, a truth that may cause pain 
before giving us a new sphere of freedom. we choose instead 
to content ourselves with intellectual "wisdom," we will re-
main in the sphere of illusion and self-deception. (I) 

Conclusion 

The Ugly Duckling is a tale for all persons, a tale for those who 
wish to dive deeply into the realm of the unconscious. It is a story of 
transformation, of liberation, of rebirth. Written by a man caught be-
tween two worlds, two times, it reveals valuable insights for this time, 
this history. 

Life is the hero's journey. It's time to stop blaming our mothers, fa-
thers, sisters, brothers, life in general. Transformation is a choice. 

WORKS CITED 

Heuscher, Julius. A Psychiatric Study of Myths and Fairy Tales. Springfield, 
 IL: Charles C. Thomas, 1974. 
Miller, Alice. The Drama of the Gifted Child: The Search for the True Self 

New York, NY: Perseus, 1997 revised edition. 
Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford, England: Oxford UP, 2002. 
Schectman, Jacqueline. The Stepmother in Fairy tales. Boston, MA: Sigo, 1993. 
von Franz, Marie Louise. Interpretation of Fairy Tales. Dallas, TX: Spring 
 Publications, 1970. 
Zipes, Jack. Fairy Tales and the Art of Subversion. London, England: 
 Methuen., 1988. 
 University of Southern Denmark, Website of the Center of Hans Christian An- 
 dersen, "Short Biography." http://www.andersen.sdu.dk/liv/minibio/ in- 
 dex_e.html 

76 



 

 FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE: 
HOW CULTURAL IDENTITY IS CONSTRUCTED THROUGH 
IRISH AND IRISH AMERICAN CHILDREN'S LITERATURE 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA 

Wee, magical fairies and cheeky, green leprechauns searching for 
enormous pots of gold jumped off the pages of my childhood books and 
into my consciousness of what defines "Irishness." The stereotypical 
stories routinely reflected light-hearted, slightly daft Irish characters who 
were carefree and often getting into mischief. Contemporary Irish and 
Irish American narratives have moved beyond my childhood 
"shamrockery" reading to richer and more developed texts. This essay 
considers how cultural identity is conveyed in these works. 

Children are extremely impressionable, and what they read impacts 
the way they view the world. Children's literature is a powerful vehicle 
for delivering cultural awareness and national identity. The plots and 
themes act as a "cultural barometer," measuring trends in society. 
Children's literature provides a sense of nationality and helps define the 
character of the people it portrays. Much has been researched on the role 
of narrative in the development of a reader's historical understanding, 
and authorities are clear about its value in children's social and 
intellectual development. 

A short history of Irish children's literature 

Irish themes have been featured in scores of juvenile works both 
inside and outside of Ireland. Indeed, it is quite possible that more "Irish" 
children's stories have been written by American than Irish authors. One 
reason may be demographics, as the ancestral homeland of nearly one-
fifth of all Americans is Ireland, and according to 1990 census figures, 
there are eight times as many people of Irish ancestry living in America 
as there are residents in Ireland today. Another consideration is market 
size, as the United States publishes over 5000 children's stories annually, 
compared with fewer than 200 in Ireland. 

Curiously, despite Ireland's prolific and long literary history, chil-
dren's literature in Ireland is a relatively recent phenomenon. Prior to the 
1980s, "with a population small in number and with a weak economy, 
there was simply no market for children's books in Ireland," observed 
children's literature scholar Emer Sullivan (6). Irish author Tony Hickey 
provided a personal example of how limited the production of children's 
stories in Ireland was during this time. During our interview 



 

FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE 

in Dublin, Hickey lamented: "When my book, Matchless Mice, came out 
in 1980, I was amazed to discover that it was the only children's book 
published in the Republic that year!" The majority of Irish children's 
writers had regularly turned to the United States or England to be 
published, and these books had to fulfill "foreign expectations" with 
regard to plot, theme, and characterization. "Overseas publishers tend to 
want only their notions of Irishness, the land of the leprechauns" 
(Sullivan 6). Hence, Irish children's stories were trapped in old-
fashioned stereotypes, which some bemoan as "stage Irish." 

Today, there is what many call a "flowering" of Irish children's 
literature. Irish children's author Siobhan Parkinson explained this new 
phenomenon in Horn Book Magazine: 

The success in recent years of Irish children's publishing 
is due partly to the efforts of the publishers and writers them- 
selves, partly to the Arts Council and other government sup 
port (royalties for creative artists are tax-tree), and largely to 
the growth in both the Irish economy and the Irish sense of 
self-esteem, particularly in cultural issues. (I75) 

One of the most popular literary genres published for children in 
Ireland is historical fiction. Celia Keenan analyzed this recent trend in 
her article, "Reflecting a New Confidence: Irish Historical Fiction for 
Children. " 

The historical novel has a particular importance in colo-
nial and post-colonial cultures when people need to explain 
who they are and why their plight is so painful. But the enor-
mous growth of historical fiction for children in Ireland would 
seem to me to reflect a new confidence in Irish society, ema-
nating from widespread popular belief that if we understand 
the past we might behave better in the future. (369) 

Fictional novels set in the past tend to focus on the human side of 
history and give young readers a sense of how life was lived. A water-
shed in modem Irish history is the Great Irish Famine of the mid-
nineteenth century. Literature for children presenting this calamitous 
time illustrates how stories impact the way children view their cultural 
identity and heritage. 

Is the Great Irish Famine a significant event? 

In 1845, there were more than eight million people in Ireland, the 
vast majority of native Irish subsisting almost entirely on potatoes. This 

78 



 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA 

dependence on the potato had devastating consequences when a catas-
trophic blight destroyed much of the potato harvests of 1845, 1846, 
1848 and 1849. Over this period, an estimated one to one and a half 
million people died of starvation and disease, and another two million 
were forced to emigrate to new worlds, mainly to the United States, 
Britain, Canada and Australia. 

Irish Famine historian and scholar Christine Kinealy described the 
Great Famine as "one of the most lethal famines in modem history, 
accounting for a loss of 25 percent of the population in Ireland over a 
period of six years" (2). In fact, one hundred and fifty-eight years have 
passed since the start of the Great Famine, and yet Ireland's population 
has never recovered. Ireland remains the only country in Europe today 
with a population smaller than it was in 1845. 

While historians, economists, sociologists, educators, journalists and 
politicians have debated the varied and controversial causes for the Irish 
Famine, all agree that it is a defining event in Irish history. The 
consequences of the Great Famine changed more than the course of Irish 
history; the resulting Irish diaspora affected the shape of world history, 
especially that of America. There are nearly one hundred million people 
around the globe who claim some Irish ancestry and over fifty-two 
million of these are Americans, many of who are in the United States 
today as a result of the Famine ("Irish Identity"). The impact of the Great 
Famine is critical to understanding modem Irish and American history. 

History and Literature 

Despite the significance of the Great Famine, it has inspired rela-
tively little fictional writing, especially in the domain of juvenile litera-
ture. The absence of children's novels in Ireland that sought to educate 
young people about the Great Famine and its ramifications is ironic, for 
Ireland is a nation passionate about history with a world-renowned lit-
erary reputation. Recently, many scholars have been addressing this 
"silence" that seems to have surrounded the Famine. The pathos of suf-
fering and the psychological legacy of diaspora associated with the 
catastrophe appear to have had long-term consequences on the psyches 
of Irish and Irish emigrants. The children's novelists I interviewed spoke 
vehemently about the silence and the Famine's effect on Irish culture. 
Shame and survival guilt are at the core of this issue. Feelings of deep 
shame that are associated with being perceived as passive victims, or 
feelings of guilt that are associated with being perceived as ruthless 
survivors, have contributed to the sounds of silence. I believe 

79 



 

FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE 

that this mentality influenced children's authors and publishers, resulting 
in a paucity of books available on the topic for children. 

Since the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Irish 
Famine in the mid-1990s, the topic has received a dramatic increase in 
media, literary, and scholarly attention. School systems, reacting to this 
new public awareness, have started addressing the Great Famine, and 
today it is taught in every school district in Ireland and is included in 
many American school curriculums as well. This change has also been 
reflected in children's literature, as authors from around the world have 
finally begun producing quality children's literature that depicts this 
historic and traumatic event. Children's writers have imaginatively 
represented the Irish Famine, bringing the event to life in a way that 
traditional textbooks cannot. Young people, rarely represented in history 
books, are the main protagonists in juvenile fiction. Famine novels help 
young readers understand the greatest crisis in Irish history by 
personifying it through fictional characters that they can connect and 
identify with, thus making the history of the Famine feel real to them. 

Christine Kinealy acknowledged that "the impetus to remember the 
Famine was often strongest outside of Ireland," and the chronology of the 
publication dates of children's Famine books is a perfect exam 
ple of this (2). The very first children's Famine story, The Search of 
Mary Katherine Mulloy, was written by an American author in 1974. It is 
interesting to note that the first eight books were all published in the 
United States. The next nationality to explore the subject was, re-
markably, the British, with Michael Morpurgo's Twist of Gold (1983). 
The Irish themselves did not address the Great Famine in children's 
literature until 1990, 140 years after the catastrophe, when Marita Con-
lon-McKenna wrote Under the Hawthorn Tree. The book surprised 
Irish publishers by becoming the most commercially successful Irish 
novel for children, winning countless international awards and resulting 
in two sequels. Today, it is on the national curriculum and read by every 
Irish primary student. This groundbreaking narrative marked the 
beginning of the Irish exploring the subject for its young people. 

Historical novels portraying the Great Famine to children and ado-
lescents tend to follow predictable plot patterns. Generally, there is a 
reliance on two traditional conventions. The first is the quest, which is to 
survive the Famine, and the second is the initiation into adulthood, 
demonstrated by emigrating from Ireland. While some novels present the 
Famine from a slightly non-traditional angle and may insert unique twists 
and turns into the narrative, overall there is a remarkable consistency in 
the way the catastrophe is portrayed. 

80 



 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA 

Basic plot formula 

"As they drew near the lane they noticed a strange smell, a smell of 
something rank and putrid" (Lally 12). The typical story opens up with 
the stench of the rotting potatoes in the field of a small farm, the 
desperate attempts to salvage any unspoiled potatoes, and the ultimate 
resignation that blight has occurred. The reader vicariously witnesses the 
vast hunger the young girl and her family experience as they seek to 
survive. Most tales contain the historically accurate portrayal of the 
cruelty meted out to the peasants by the merciless and predatory land-
lords. Eviction scenes show the suffering and deprivation of thousands 
who were callously evicted from their homes by English soldiers. In-
evitability, each story includes the tumbling of a poor widow's cottage. 

With their homes demolished, leaving the main character and her 
family destitute, the quest for food and work begins. There are depictions 
of wretched laborers working for a pittance and the contemptuous export 
of corn and cattle from Ireland while the poor starve. Workhouses feature 
in these accounts, usually as places to be dreaded and feared. But 
sometimes the family is reduced to entering them, resulting in disease 
and disastrous consequences. 

Death is omnipresent. These are not cheery tales, as they deal with 
cruelty and hardship, and are heart wrenching at times. The young hero 
often loses her parents and a baby sister to Famine fever. Yet, despite 
how desperate the situation may appear during the plot, the key to sur-
vival is usually found in the predictable escape from Ireland. There is the 
journey to the docks, usually on foot, where the protagonist has a series 
of encounters with the starving along the road. The initiation into 
adulthood is now unfolding. Eventually the young woman reaches the 
docks and makes the horrendous passage to North America in a "coffin 
ship." Graphic descriptions of the crowded, stench-filled pit of steerage 
where she comes face to face with illness and death are common. In 
fact, the plots are somewhat repetitive with the central character always 
befriending another family, an older passenger always dying of fever 
and being cast overboard, and the typical storm at sea. Sometimes the 
story concludes with the arrival into America and the passage into 
adulthood is completed. These narratives offer the Irish immigrant a 
fresh start, and the story is able to conclude on a happy or at least hope-
ful note. Sequels, all set in America, follow five of these novels. 

When emigration happens early in the story line, the plot formula 
continues to be predictable. The protagonist typically battles discrimi-
nation, struggles with prejudice, and encounters signs that say, "No Irish 
Need Apply." Eventually these tenacious young women find work as 
domestic servants in New York or are employed by the textile mills 

81 



 

FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE 

in Massachusetts. Generally these books also end happily. Often the 
central character raises the passage money for the rest of her family to 
come over and has fallen in love in her new homeland. 

Emigration, commonly employed by novelists because the Famine 
resulted in massive migration, also provides these despairing tales with 
an optimistic and promising ending. Of course, not all of the Famine 
novels end happily. The children never locate their missing parents in 
Under the Hawthorn Tree (1990), Mary dies of cholera in the epilogue in 
So Far from Home (1997), and in Across the Sea from Galway (1975), 
the ship crashes along the coast and nearly everyone onboard perishes. 
Yet, most children's books prescribe a happy ending, or at least conclude 
with a message of hope. 

Heroic Characters 

These are survival stories. The resourcefulness and inner courage 
necessitated in escaping starvation and fever under horrendous circum-
stances lie at the center of these novels. While the body of adult Famine 
literature is often told as one of passive victimization or as one of resis-
tance, children's Famine literature centers on the will to survive in-
credible hardships. The main characters are consistently courageous, 
spirited, quick-witted, and independent. Determined to create new and 
better worlds for themselves, these young heroes learn to endure and to 
seize every chance for survival. It is my argument that the traits and 
qualities of these protagonists represent "Irishness" to readers. 

Take, for example, American Susan Campbell Bartoletti's Black 
Potatoes, which was awarded the coveted Robert F. Sibert Award for the 
most distinguished informational book for children published in 2001. 
This 160-page text examines the events of the Famine and the 
experiences of ordinary people living in that time. I met and interviewed 
Bartoletti, and she told me how she intentionally avoided highlighting 
the victimization and instead focused on heroism. She went on to say, 
"What are the heroic acts? If we look at searching in fields for turnip tops 
and edible weeds, that is a heroic act. Yes, you are a victim, but you are 
also a hero because you are struggling to survive and help your family 
survive." 

This attitude is a familiar one, and several of the authors I inter-
viewed have noted the desire to present heroism. When I spoke with 
Marita Conlon-McKenna in Dublin, she expressed a view similar to 
Bartoletti's, noting that the central theme in Under the Hawthorn Tree 
(1990) is that these children have made up their minds to survive. 
"They're not going to be beaten; they're not going to lie down and die," 
McKenna told me. A passage from the novel illustrates this theme: 

82 



 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA 

Michael and Eily decided that they must get Peggy and 
themselves strong enough again for the rest of the journey. It 
was their only chance. 

The next few days were spent hunting for food. They had 
to keep the fire going also. They had finished the blood. Mi-
chael went searching at night and had been lucky enough to 
catch a rat and a hedgehog. They had lost their squeamishness 
by now and knew that all that mattered was their survival. 
Nettles were plentiful, and every ripened berry was also 
picked. (133) 

Novels about the Great Famine allow readers to vicariously ex-
perience the devastating effects that famine, poverty, and homelessness 
can have on people, and provide an understanding of human resilience. 
Children, who are beginning to form their own values and principles, can 
learn from the bravery and hope of the protagonists who persevered 
against the odds. I believe these stories allow young readers today to 
relate to these Irish protagonists as heroes, thus counteracting potential 
guilt and shame that may have plagued the generations before them. 

Why didn't the Irish just fish? 

Consider this personal memory relating to this guilt and shame 
theme that I am trying to convey. I have vague recollections of my social 
studies teacher remarking how it was ludicrous the Irish never fished the 
seas, implying that they were responsible for starving. This sentiment is 
not unique, and some of my American contemporaries had similar 
recollections that the Irish were too lazy, too stupid to save themselves. 
"It is difficult at first to understand why the Irish people, thousands of 
whom lived near the coast, did not fish," Cecil Woodham Smith 
acknowledged in the groundbreaking text, The Great Hunger: Ireland 
1845-1849 (1962), the first mainstream factual account on the Irish 
Famine (298). Certainly it is unflattering for a nation to perceive itself as 
passive victims. 

Contemporary Irish children's literature has changed this miscon-
ception. Imbedded in numerous narratives are the various reasons ex-
plaining why Ireland, an island surrounded by water, failed to take 
advantage of its maritime wealth. Novels such as Under the Hawthorn 
Tree (1990) and Twist of Gold (1983) educate children by portraying 
their characters taking risks by fishing illegally. American author, Eileen 
Carbonneau, informs her readers about the laws in Ireland during the 
1840s in her young adult romance novel, Rachel LeMoyne (1998). 

83 



 

FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE 

Rachel observes the manor home as a "place of crystal chandeliers, oil 
paintings, majestic trees, and a trout-filled river in which the poor might 
be killed for fishing" (65). The disparity between the English landlords 
and the Irish peasants are clearly shown. The Hungry Wind (1997), by 
Irish author Soinbhe Lally, also reveals the hardships endured during the 
Great Famine: 

Each day the women and girls went to the rocks to gather 
seaweed and shellfish. At one end of the strand there were 
stretches of muddy sand, encrusted with acres of mussels, but 
they were not allowed to pick those. For fear that hunger 
would tempt them the landlords agent, Mister Hamilton, sent 
his men to warn tenants, that the mussel beds were not in-
cluded in their shore rights. (14) 

Consider the most popular children's Irish Famine novel in North 
America, Nory Ryan's Song (2000). Written by American Patricia Reilly 
Giff, a descendant of Famine immigrants, this ALA Notable Book has 
been widely distributed in the United States and has sold numerous 
copies. Giff, winner of two Newbery Honor Awards, has recently written 
a sequel, Maggie's Door (2003). In Giff's first Famine story, twelve-
year-old Nory and her family live along the west coast of Ireland, and 
her neighbors fish for a living. Disaster hits when their landlord, Lord 
Cunningham, confiscates their currach: 

The currach was gone too, gone to pay for the Mallons' 
rent from last year. Gone, not even for Cunningham to use. 
"What would he want with the sea, and the cold, and the ach-
ing hard work?" Liam had said. "What would he want with the 
danger?" Devlin (the landlord's agent) had locked it up with 
chains on the pier in the harbor. It would be there, with the tar 
on the canvas drying and cracking, until great holes appeared 
and the currach wasted away. It wouldn't be the first time. 
There were others there, waiting for the owners to pay the rent 
they owed and get them back, but that never happened. (69) 

A passage from the fantasy novel, Knockabeg: A Famine Tale 
(2001), written by Irish American Mary E. Lyons, echoes this theme as 
well. "The shillings go to Lord Armitage Shank for his bloody rent! 
Many families have even sold their hide canoes and fishing nets to pay 
the fee" (5). 

84 



 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA 

These examples certainly do not correlate laziness with Irishness. 
Instead, the books educate young readers by illustrating the varied and 
complex circumstances surrounding the fishing problem, such as fish-
ermen being forced to sell their gear to buy food for their families and 
fishing rights belonging to the English landlords. Shame, that may have 
been associated with passive victimization, has now been replaced by an 
accurate historical understanding of this issue. Children's literature of the 
Irish Famine, non-existent during my childhood, sheds a new light on 
complicated issues and educates children by weaving historical 
information throughout the narrative. 

"He took the soup" 

Many may recall the phrase, "he took the soup," or the insulting 
term, "souper." These expressions are still heard today and were coined 
during the Irish Famine when anti-Catholic zealots would provide free 
soup to the destitute villagers if they first agreed to renounce their relig-
ion. So strong was the Catholic faith in Ireland during this time that 
some Irish starved to death rather than convert to Protestantism. Those 
that did turn apostate and partake in the soup were called soupers, a 
disdainful stigma that often marked their families for generations. 
"Souperism," the nickname for this proselytization aspect of evangelical 
Protestant missions, it is more frequent in Famine folklore than in 
historical research. While souperism did occur, it was uncommon. 
However, it created tremendous tension where it did exist, resulting in 
long lasting and bitter memories that have been passed down from gen-
eration to generation. 

Though not a universal motif in the children's Irish Famine narra-
tives, souperism is mentioned in several works. Interestingly, the reac-
tion by the main characters is usually one of ambivalence, and vague 
attention is given to the religious pressure. For example, in Under the 
Hawthorn Tree (1990), Eily, Michael, and Peggy sleep outside a soup 
kitchen in order to be the first in line the next day. "During the night an 
old man shook them and told them to be on their way, as the heathens 
would try to convert them in the morning and if they took another mug 
of soup they may as well take the Queen's shilling. The children were 
puzzled, but simply ignored him" (81-82). The children were offered 
stew the following day and were not asked to renounce their faith. Cer-
tainly no guilt or shame is associated with the old man's remark, and the 
story moves forward without additional comment. 

Souperism is also mentioned in passing in Canadian James 
Heneghan's The Grave (2000), a time-slip novel for young adolescents. 

85 



 

FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE 

The teenage protagonist, Tom Mullen, is also confused when he is la-
beled as a souper. 

We joined a lineup for soup and had to take it inside and listen 
to a sermon from a bad-tempered minister named Nangle who 
went on and on about popery and sin and other stuff I didn't 
understand. As we came out, a bunch of old biddies were 
standing in the street yelling at us, calling us Soupers. I was too 
tired to ask Hannah what the fuss was about. (103) 

Tom appears too famished and fatigued to be concerned about deroga-
tory comments from onlookers, and no conversion of faith in exchange 
for food occurs in the novel. 

In Mary-Anne's Famine (1994), written by Irish author Colette 
McCormack, the soup kitchens are accepted, and the local priest even 
encourages his parishioners to partake in the charity. Mary-Anne records 
in her journal: 

The soup kitchens are near us and we must make use of them. 
Father O'Rourke tells us never to mind that the people who 
give out the soup are not of our religion, to live is the important 
thing. Some people turn from being Catholics so they will get 
more soup and other help. We drink the soup but it is not very 
good. (16-17) 

In Red Bird of Ireland (1983), by American Sondra Gordon Lang-
ford, Aderyn hears about the evangelical Protestants second hand, and 
the story line is sympathetic to the Famine victims who succumb to 
souperism: 

"We saw something else by the wharf, Father 
Domhnaill," said Seamas. "There was a little house from 
which some well-dressed people were offering soup to the 
poor who stood around. There were many poor and hungry, 
but on one would eat. A man told me that, in order to get that 
soup, you have to blaspheme the Blessed Virgin and the Holy 
Catholic Church. Can that be true?" 

"I'm afraid so," said Uncle Domhnaill. "I've been told, 
by priest and others, that there is food being given out, all 
over Ireland, to those who will abjure their Catholic faith. 
Some poor souls are so hungry that they do turn from their 
faith in order to get some food. Those who do so are well 

86 



 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA 

cared for, afterward. I don't judge a starving person who does 
what he feels he must in order to stay alive, or keep his family 
alive. I pray for him. God in heaven will be his judge, not I." 
(147-148) 

Collectively, there is a lack of any serious religious tension in 
children's literature of the Famine, and it is interesting to note that sou-
perism is not referenced again during the narratives. These passages 
show compassion to the starving people who took the soup. The char-
acters are not ostracized or made to feel blameworthy in any way. Al-
though the practice of souperism was not widespread, where it did occur 
it still remains an emotive part of the oral culture of the Famine, and 
guilt and anger are still in the mindset of some Irish and Irish Americans 
today. Children's literature, however, appears to playa pivotal role in 
dissipating this souperism friction. Perhaps a more confident Irish 
identity results from this new understanding and awareness. The 
protagonists, with whom the young readers identify, are heroes, 
surviving by any means they can, whether it is accepting soup from 
people of a different religion, fishing illegally on the landlord's land, or 
emigrating from their homeland. 

Conclusions 

Historical fiction presenting the Great Famine provides a nexus be-
tween the past and the present, educating children about this conse-
quential historical event, while revealing the unspoken significance the 
Irish Famine has in their current lives. It is important for children to 
remember that the horrific extremes of famine and poverty during the 
1840s are still prevalent in many parts of the world, and refugees come 
to Ireland and America to escape these conditions. It is vital that Irish 
and Irish Americans make the connection that their ancestors shared the 
plight of these people today. Quality historical fiction can provide young 
readers with a sense of continuity in time and history and an awareness 
of their roots that encourage appreciation for where they came from and 
where they are going. 

As a young American child in the 1960s, my exposure to literary 
Irish characters was limited to the stupid housewife, Mrs. Callahan, in 
Richard and Phyllis Atwater's classic book, Mr. Popper's Penguins, or 
the portly policeman, Michael, and his boss, Clancy, in Make Way for 
Ducklings, Robert McCloskey's Caldecott Award winning book (Savage 
37). My understanding of Irishness was limited to Lucky Charms cereal, 
"Kiss me I'm Irish" buttons, and wearing green on St. Patrick's Day. 
These outdated clichés are being replaced with modem and more 

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FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE 

accurate definitions of Irish culture through children's literature of the 
Great Famine. Carefree peasants catching leprechauns are now super-
seded by courageous children combating illness, starvation, eviction and 
emigration. 

Consider twelve year old Eily, the eldest of the O'Driscoll children 
in Under the Hawthorn Tree. This character grows in strength and 
courage as she assumes the responsibility for her younger siblings after 
her mother has left. Eily's bold determination and resourcefulness are 
clearly shown as she struggles to find food to live another day and keep 
her siblings alive. She demonstrates maturity and ingenuity as she nurses 
her sister, Peggy, who is stricken with famine fever, and her brother, 
Michael, who is suffering from an infectious wound. In the middle of the 
novel when hunger and homelessness becomes overwhelming, Peggy 
muses "Are we in hell?" and Eily responds, "No, just a place destroyed. 
Come on, we'll move through this as quick as we can" (108). Eily's 
indomitable spirit transcends this time of misery as she endeavors to 
survive. 

"I wanted to make sure the children were intelligent and resource-
ful," Conlon-McKenna explained during our interview. Creating char-
acters that were models for her own children, Conlon-McKenna made the 
O'Driscolls different from her own childhood reading. She lamented that 
very few books in the past portrayed Irish children as clever or thinking 
for themselves. "They were nice kids. Kind, but dull. Not smart. No 
bright sparks." As a child, Conlon-McKenna emulated Laura Ingalls and 
Heidi instead of identifying with Irish characters. "It's a strange thing, 
really, but when I read other children's books from other countries I 
would say, 'I wish I could be her.'" 

Conlon-McKenna's sentiments were echoed by other authors I in-
terviewed. Many writers for children purposely depicted confident and 
positive Irish characters in their Famine narratives. The protagonists 
remained strong throughout the story line by enduring emigration from 
Ireland and battling bigotry and intolerance in America. These attributes 
are rooted in historical fact as Hasia Diner described in her scholarly text 
Erin's Daughters in America (1983). Her research revealed that 
thousands of Irish woman were able to utilize ambition, energy, and 
ability that would otherwise have remained stifled by the effects of the 
Great Famine. Diner describes these educational and occupational 
successes and emphasizes that the qualities that enabled many Irish to 
prosper can be found in Ireland's cultural traditions. 

The personality traits that Diner articulates are repeated in the cen-
tral characters of children's fiction of the Famine. Themes of resiliency, 
gallantry, love, and loyalty, commonly portrayed in Famine novels, are 
interpreted by youngsters as typically Irish. Young readers, who often 

8
8 



 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA 

identify with the child characters in the story line, relate to the persever-
ance of these protagonists and believe that they also can successfully 
learn to handle difficult situations. Reading about the Great Famine in 
fictional novels gives Irish and Irish American children a new cultural 
identity and a deeper meaning regarding their ancestral homeland. 

In Ireland, as in all countries, literature is the mirror in which the 
events of a nation's history are reflected. Whether examining historical 
fiction, or the many other literary genres, a study of children's literature 
may be regarded as a study of a country and its people. Authors of Irish 
children's stories play an important role in the developing and nurturing 
of a distinctive Irish identity. The absorption of cultural knowledge from 
early childhood through young adult reading is particularly acute. The 
characters in Irish children's stories have developed from the weak and 
stereotypical images represented in my childhood reading, to the fresh, 
appealing, and strong-willed heroes portrayed in contemporary Irish 
stories that my children are reading today. The story lines have matured 
from traditional folktales to modem and expressive narratives. This 
encouraging and accelerating change over the last few decades is an 
indication of how Irish and Irish American society and cultural identity 
has also evolved. 

WORKS CITED 

Bartoletti, Susan Campbell. Black Potatoes. Boston: Houghton, 2001.  
_______. Personal interview. 13 June 2002. 
Bolton, Carole. The Search of Mary Katherine Mulloy. New York: Thomas 

Nelson, 1974. 
Charbonneau, Eileen. Rachel Le Moyne. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, 

1998. 
Conlon-McKenna, Marita. Personal interview. 21 August 2001. 
______. Under the Hawthorn Tree. New York: Holiday House, 1990. 
Denenberg, Barry. So Far from Home: The Diary of Mary Driscoll, an Irish 
 Mill Girl (Dear America). New York: Scholastic, 1997. 
Diner, Hasia R. Erin's Daughters in America. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 
 1983. 
Fisher, Leonard Everett. Across the Sea from Galway. New York: Four Winds, 

1975. 
Giff, Patricia Reilly. Nary Ryan's Song. New Yark: Delacorte, 2000.  
Heneghan, James. The Grave. New York: Frances Foster Books, 2000.  
Hickey, Tony. Personal interview. 24 August 2001. 
"Irish Identity," http://www.hoganstand.com/general/identitv/. Internet ac- 
 cessed 24 February 2003. 
Keenan, Celia. "Reflecting A New Confidence: Irish Historical Fiction for 
 Children" The Lion and the Unicorn 21.3 (1997): 369-78. 

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FROM FAIRIES TO FAMINE 

Kinealy, Christine. A Death-Dealing Famine: The Great Hunger in Ireland. 
London: Pluto Press, 1997. 

Lally, Soinbhe. The Hungry Wind. Dublin: Poolbeg Press, 1997. 
Langford, Sondra Gordon. Red Bird of Ireland. New York: Atheneum, 1983. 
Lyons, Mary E. Knockabeg: A Famine Tale. Boston: Houghton, 2001. 
McCormack, Colette. Mary-Anne 's Famine. Cork: Attic Press, 1994. 
Morpurgo, Michael. Twist of Gold. London: Kaye and Ward, 1983.  
O'Sullivan, Emer. "Ireland and the World of Children's Books." Children's 
 Books in Ireland (1998)16: 6-7. 
Parkinson, Siobhan. "A View from the Other Island: Children's Books in Ire- 
 land." The Horn Book Magazine, March/April2001: 173-78. 
Savage, John F. "Ireland and the Irish in American Children's Literature," 
 Children's Books in Ireland, 18 (Spring 1998): 36-37. 
Woodham-Smith, Cecil. The Great Hunger: Ireland 1845-1849. London: Pen- 
 guin, 1962. 

90 



 

REVIEW ROUNDUP 2003 

GAIL DE VOS 
MERLE HARRIS 

This collective descriptive review essay encapsulates all of the remain-
ing titles that I received for reviewing in this journal in 2003. As you 
will see, two major publishers of storytelling and folklore material have 
been strong submitters to your review columnist. Storyteller Merle Har-
ris and myself divided up the titles for review and I have arranged them, 
for the most part, by publisher and series. 

World Folklore Series published by Libraries Unlimited. 

The World Folklore Series is aimed at school librarians and teach-
ers, but much of the text is accessible to older students. The series not 
only contain folktales, but also brief histories as well as information on 
the role of folklore and storytelling in the various regions and is a won-
derful introduction to new stories and a better understanding of distant 
countries and their peoples. The series could be made more inviting for 
children by improving the book cover design. With the exception of the 
cover of When Night Falls! the series look more like textbooks than the 
storybooks they truly are. All volumes contain line drawings and colour 
photographs. Thematic indices in all the books would also be appreci-
ated. 

The following volumes are only a few of the titles from this ongoing 
series which both of us were quite impressed with the presentation, 
background information and rhythm of the tales. 

Folktales from Greece: A Treasury of Delights. Mitakidou, Soula, An-
thony L. Manna, and Melpomeni Kanatsouli. Illustrated by Anas-
tasia Valavanidou and Photography by Georgios Katsagelos, 2002. 
1 56308 908 4 

From the Mango Tree and Other Folktales from Nepal. Shrestha, 
 Kavita Ram and Sarah Lamstein, 1997. 1 56308 378 7 
Gadi Mirrabooka: Australian Aboriginal Tales from the Dreaming. 
 Retold by Pauline E. McLeod, Francis Firebrace Jones and June E. 
 Barker. Edited by Helen F. McKay, 2001. 1 56308 923 8. 
Jasmine and Coconuts: South Indian Tales. Spagnoli, Cathy and Pa- 
 ramasivam Samanna. Illustrated by Paramasivam Samanna. 1999. 
 1 56308 576 3. 
Tales from the Heart of the Balkans. Marshall, Bonnie C. Edited by 
 Vasa D. Mihailovich, 2001. 1 56308 870 3. 



 

REVIEW ROUNDUP 2003 

The Celtic Breeze: Stories of the Otherworld from Scotland, Ireland 
and Wales. McNeil, Heather. Illustrated by Nancy Chien-Eriksen. 
2001. 1 56308 778 2. 

When Night Falls, Kric! Krac! Haitian Folktales. Louis, Liliane Ner- 
 ette, edited by Fred Hay, 1999. 1 563089 579 8. 

Folktales from Greece: A Treasury of Delights was the result of 
meeting with Manna, visiting from America, and Mitakidou when they 
were both doing research in the same Greek pre-school where the oral 
tradition was alive and well. The introduction offers a brief historical 
background of the area, and explanation of the function and classification 
of Greek tales, information on the art of Greek storytelling and the 
selection criteria for the tales in the book. The twenty tales are divided 
into five sections: supernatural beings, tales of transformation, clever 
folk, stories with strong morals, and humorous stories. Each section 
begins with an introduction about these tales and comprehensive notes 
follow each story. This is a strong collection, beautifully translated and 
containing stories that are suitable for all ages. There are good references 
and a useful index but pronunciation guides for some of the names would 
have been helpful. 

As with the other volumes in this series, From the Mango Tree and 
Other Folktales from Nepal starts with a brief introduction to Nepal—its 
history, religion, people and daily life. Lamstein points out that it is the 
first collection of Nepalese folktales published in North America. The 
fifteen folktales, collected and translated by Kavita Ram Shrestha, are 
stories of royalty, the common people and pour quoi tales of the origins 
of lakes and caves in Nepal. There is a combination of gentleness, 
humility and humour in these stories which should appeal to adults and 
children alike. The final story in the collection has been written out in the 
Nepalese script. The end matter includes a glossary of terms and a 
bibliography. 

The introduction to Gadi Mirrabooka states that this is the first 
collection of stories from the Dreamtime of the Australian Aboriginals 
told by Aboriginal storyteller custodians. The informative introduction 
explains the importance of these stories to the culture and belief system 
of the traditional audience as well as the concept of the Dreamtime. 
Material in the first sections of the books looks at the physical landscape, 
the flora, the fauna and the aboriginal people of the land and includes 
historical and contemporary background information. The thirty-three 
short tales, the majority of which are pour quoi tales, are told in various 
localities within the Australian continent. Back matter includes a 
glossary, a bibliography and information about the three storytellers and 
editor of this volume. This volume puts these tales in their proper content 
and allows the non-aboriginal storyteller/reader a strong glimpse into this 
ancient culture. 

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GAIL DE VOS AND MERLE HARRIS 

In Jasmine and Coconuts: South Indian Tales, Spagnoli and 
Samanna write of a region and people they know well. Their exploration 
of this area includes a brief history of the four southern states, as well as 
an overview of religions, arts, crafts and daily life. The authors also 
explain the differences in telling styles in South India covering the many 
facets of storytelling: language, gesture, pronunciation, music and much 
more. The forty-two tales are divided into seven themes consistent with 
South Indian values, such as "Value of Simplicity, Problem of Greed" 
and "Respect for Family and Elders," and, where necessary, explanatory 
notes precede the story. The stories are wide ranging from ancient to 
modern, from folklore to true stories, and all of them have a strong oral 
rhythm to them. The appendix covers festivals, resources, pen pals and 
websites, and a glossary. As well there are sources for the stories, 
bibliographies for both adults and children, an index and thematic index. 
This book is a real treasure trove - a delight for the ears and the eyes. 

Tales from the Heart of the Balkans is the most diverse of all the 
collections reviewed. The book covers five independent countries: 
Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslavia and Macedonia. 
The introduction includes a concise but good history of the region, with 
an overview of oral literature and its importance, as well as some of the 
problems associated with translating stories from three official languages 
and their many dialects. The thirty-three tales are divided into myths and 
legends, animal tales, fairy tales and tales of everyday life. All the 
regions are represented in all the stories and the retellings should work 
well whether they are read aloud or told to the students, or used for 
independent reading. A glossary and pronunciation guide and a good 
index round off a book that is a great introduction to a diverse region and 
its stories. 

In her search for her Celtic roots, author Heather McNeil travels to 
the country of her ancestors. The Celtic Breeze briefly introduces this 
region and its people, tales and songs before retelling fifteen traditional 
tales, many accompanied by related ballads and their musical notation. 
Faery folk of the earth, of the water, and their interaction with ghosts 
and music are the focus of this collection. Each tale is put in context by 
the author. The back matter includes a brief inventory of items offering 
protection from the faery folk, a glossary, bibliography and a recom-
mended reading list as well as an index. 

In Liliane Louis's introduction to When Night Falls, Kric! Krac! 
Haitian Folktales she uses stories to give what she calls "an overview of 
the beautiful and mysterious land." Together with Hay's introduction, 
readers learn about Haiti's geography and history as well as the 
importance of voodoo and magic to the Haitian people. The twenty 
eight stories are divided into six sections: That Stupid Bouki, Step-
mother Can Never be Real Mother, Animal Stories, Kings and Princes, 

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REVIEW ROUNDUP 2003 

Unpleasant Encounters and Stories of Love and Courtship. There is a 
gentle reminder before the stories begin about the importance of pre-
reading because several stories in this book reflect the harsh realities of 
life in a culture different from that of our readers. There are, however, 
stories for everyone from young children to adults in these tales which 
Louis has both heard and told over the years. She also includes some of 
her favourite recipes. A much needed glossary, good index and coloured 
photographs round out this collection which will have many calling out 
"Kric" and waiting for the "Krac" to get story time going. 

Titles from August House 

A prolific producer of books of storytelling material and folktales 
for adults and children, August House offers various series and collec-
tions for use in schools, libraries and by storytellers of all ages. The titles 
that reached your book reviewer's desk revealed a great diversity in the 
types of materials that they publish. 

The Books of Nine Lives series bv Pleasant DeSpain 

All nine volumes of this series, written by Pleasant DeSpain and il-
lustrated by Don Bell, are aimed at young tellers. These tales were 
originally published in "Pleasant Journeys," a weekly newspaper column 
in The Seattle Times between 1977 and 1978 and were reprinted several 
times in book form before they appeared in this most recent 
transformation. I have only two volumes in hand (Volume 2: Tales of 
Nonsense & Tomfoolery (2001) and Volume 3: Tales of Wisdom and 
Justice (2001)) but they all have the same format. Each slim volume 
begins with an introduction of the theme, nine or ten tales from diverse 
cultures, simply written and accompanied with a full-page line drawing, 
and adequate source notes with a brief commentary for each of the tales. 
I have used these books very successfully with elementary school 
students coming to the art of storytelling for the fust time. Not only are 
these tales writing succinctly, the students are not intimidated by the size 
of the books themselves 

The other titles in the series are: 

Volume 1: Tales of Tricksters 
Volume 4: Tales of Heroes 
Volume 5: Tales of Holidays 
Volume 6: Tales of Insects 
Volume 7: Tales of Enchantment  
Volume 8: Tales to Frighten and Delight 
Volume 9: Tales of Cats 

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GAIL DE VOS AND MERLE HARRIS 

World Tales Series by Martha Hamilton and Mitch Weiss 

How and Why Stories: World Tales Kids Can Read and Tell. Hamilton, 
 Martha and Mitch Weiss. 1999.0 87483 561 5. 
Noodlehead Stories: World Tales Kids Can Read and Tell. Hamilton, 
 Martha and Mitch Weiss, 2000. 0 87483 585 2. 
Through the Grapevine: World Tales Kids Can Read and 
 Tell. Hamilton, Martha and Mitch Weiss, 2001. 0 87483 624 7 

Martha Hamilton and Mitch Weiss, also known as Beauty and the 
Beast, have been telling stories and teaching storytelling to children and 
adults for over twenty years. Their first book Children Tell Stories: A 
Teaching Guide (Richard C. Owen, 1990) is a classic. Their first col-
lection of stories for children to tell is Stories in My Pocket: Tales Kids 
Can Read and Tell (Fulcrum, 1996) was a huge hit with students and 
teachers alike. We have used and recommended these books in work-
shops for both children and adults. These three collections are aimed at 
children, full of wonderful suggestions on how they can become story-
tellers in their own unique way, but they are equally as useful to all 
beginning storytellers 

Each collection has an introduction to the type of stories in the 
compilation and a world map showing where the stories come from. The 
stories are one to two pages, retold simply but effectively with a black 
and white illustration for each story followed by brief "About the Story" 
which discuss the origin of each story and "Tips for Telling" which 
cover gestures, body language and use of voice. Following the stories 
there is a chapter "General Tips for Telling Stories" which covers 
choosing, learning and telling stories and throughout the authors 
emphasise that the tips are suggestions only and should be used to help 
tellers find their voices when telling the stories. Back matter includes an 
Activities chapter for children who want to make up their own stories 
and an appendix of sources where children can find other versions of 
these stories. 

There are twenty-five stories in How and Why Stories which answer 
many questions such as "Why the Sun Comes Up When Rooster Crows," 
"Where All Stories Come from" and "How Owl Got His Feathers." In 
the "Activities" section the authors make suggestions for original 
pourquoi stories, using the library to see if there are. stories unique to 
regions and also provide a bibliography of scientific explanations for 
some of the stories. Children love stories where they can laugh out loud 
and Noodlehead Stories delivers twenty-three hilarious stories. The 
authors warn against using derogatory terms and point out that the 
joy in these stories is "laughing at the noodlehead in all of us. A bibli-
ography of literary noodlehead stories is included. Through the Grape- 

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REVIEW ROUNDUP 2003 

vine includes thirty-one tales that have been passed down through the 
years (or grapevine), from mouth to ear to electronic transmission. 

Other August House offerings 

Czanota. Lorna MacDonald.Medieval Tales That Kids Can Read & 
 Tell. 2000.  0 87483 589 5. 
DeSpain, Pleasant.Sweet Land of Story: Thirty-Six American Tales to 
 Tell, 2000. 0 87483 600 X. 
 MacDonald, Margaret Read. The Parent's Guide to Storytelling: How to 
 Make Up New Stories and Retell Old Favorites. 2nd Edition, 2001. 
 0 87483 618 2. 
MacDonald, Margaret Read Shake-It-Up Tales! Stories to Sing, Dance, 
 Drum and Act Out.. 2000, 0 87483 570 4. 
McBride-Smith, Barbara. Tell It Together: Foolproof Scripts for Story 
 Theatre. 2001. 0 87483 650 6. 

Each of the fifteen classic legends in Medieval Tales is simply and 
briefly told to be accessible for young tellers. The tales are placed in 
context with a very concise history of the story and precise tips for the 
telling of the tale. The legendary characters in these tales include Wil-
liam Tell, Robert Bruce, Robin Hood, Joan of Arc, the Knights of the 
Roundtable, Duke Lech of Poland, Beowulf, Roland, Saladin, Alexander 
the Great, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Boudicca. Back matter includes 
information on the role of the medieval storyteller, additional pointers 
for telling the tales, and a bibliography instead of source notes. The 
stories themselves are extremely short and are attractive to children 
beginning their storytelling endeavours. 

DeSpain's collection of American tales is a treat for those who wish 
to get a sense of the United States through its regional tales. While some 
of the tales are folktales, many of them are tales of the folk, gathered by 
the author from tellers living in the various regions. The collection, 
divided up by regions, includes ghost tales, hero tales, tall tales, and a 
few tales from the Native people. Entertaining and informative source 
notes conclude the collection. 

Both of Margaret Read MacDonald's volumes follow her well-
established formula for presenting stories for retelling. The stories are 
printed in sound bites for ease of reading and learning and include notes 
on telling the tales and relevant background notes on when to tell and 
why to tell stories. Shake-It-Up Tales! offers information on playing 
with stories, using chants, songs, motions and sound effects, as well as 
stories which encompass a more dramatic flair using multiple tellers and 
audience participation, Besides the twenty tales in this collection, 
MacDonald includes an extensive list of resources and guides for each 

96 



 

GAIL DE V as AND MERLE HARRIS 

of the elements of story she discusses. An added benefit of this collec-
tion is the introduction of little known folktales from around the world. 

Story theatre is the focus of Tell It Together. After a brief discussion 
about story theatre, McBride-Smith provides tested scripts for seven 
classic myths, nine folktales and seven literary offerings adapted with 
permission from the various publishers. The scripts call for five to fifteen 
cast members and are designed for middle school students although 
many are appropriate for use with older teens. One of the strengths of 
this compilation is that the story scripts can be told by one voice, making 
it a valuable addition to any variety of collected works. 

Folktale Collections from Other Publishers 

Congdon, Kristin G. Uncle Monday and Other Florida Tales. Illustrated 
by Kitty Kitson Petterson. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 
2001, 1 57806 385 X. 

Dorson, Mercedes, and Jeanne Wilmot. Tales from the Rain Forest. 
 Hopewell, NJ: The Ecco Press, 1997,0 88001567 5. 
 Hazell, Rebecca. The Barefoot Book of Heroic Children. Illustrated by 
 Helen Cann. New York, NY: Barefoot Books, 2000, I 9 0228 323 
 6. 
 Ryan, Patrick. Shakespeare's Storybook: Folktales that Inspired the 
 Bard. Illustrated by James Mayhew. New York, NY: Barefoot 
 Books, 2001. 1 84148 307 9 
Spagnoli, Cathy. Terrific Trickster Tales from Asia. Fort Atkinson, WI: 
 Alleyside Press, 2001, 1 57950 045 5. 
Spencer, Ann. Song of the Sea: Myths, Tales and Folklore. Illustrated 
 by Mark Lang. Toronto: Tundra Books, 2001, 0 88776 487 8. 

A collection of the diverse cultures that comprise the state of Flor-
ida, Uncle Monday presents tales of magic, humor, adventure and crea-
tion. The introduction discusses the origin of the stories of and the 
tradition of storytelling within the state. Each story is accompanied by a 
reflection to that guides the reader to a deeper understanding of the 
issues, historical context and contemporary relevance of the tale. The 
fifty tales are arranged according to their overall focus: pour quoi tales; 
people with special powers; food, friends and family; unusual places, 
spaces and events; and ghosts and the supernatural. The back matter 
includes endnotes for the descriptive material, source notes, a glossary 
and bibliography. An accessible and enjoyable collection. 

Tales from the Rain Forest begins with a brief introduction to the 
Amazon basin, the Amerindian culture, and the flora and fauna of the 
area. The importance of the oral tradition among the various tribes is also 
discussed. Paintings and etchings from early explorations to the Amazon 
accompany each tale. Dorson (who grew up in Brazil) and 

97 



 

REVIEW ROUNDUP 2003 

Wilmot acknowledge that the material available to them was so abun-
dant that they chose to concentrate on myths of origins as being most 
engaging for young listeners. The book ends with a glossary of Amer-
indian and Portuguese words as well as bibliographies. The ten myths 
and legends explain the origin of humans, rain and thunder, birds, water 
lilies, fire and other wonders. Each story is followed by brief cultural 
comments. The stories (translated from Portuguese) allow the reader a 
glimpse of a mysterious and rich relationship between humans and their 
environment, and leave her or him with a desire for more of these sto-
ries. 

Rebecca Hazell has chosen to write biographies for twelve young 
people from around the world who exemplify bravery and determina-
tion. Some of the names and their stories are well known, while others 
are not so well known. In the introduction, Hazell explains what makes a 
person heroic and how she is presenting their stories in the first person. 
Each biography is written in three parts - beginning with a 'you are here" 
setting in which the place and time and a brief history is given, followed 
by the child telling the story in the first person, and then a summary of 
his/her accomplishments. I wanted to like the book but found the format 
frustrating and false. The "first person" voice did not ring true for me 
and travelling back and forward in time did not work. The book would 
have far more impact if the children's stories were in more traditional 
biography format. 

In his introduction to Shakespeare's Storybook, Patrick Ryan points 
out that in all probability Shakespeare had listened to stories all his life 
and "read everything he could lay his hands on" and so knew which 
stories his audiences would enjoy and wrote to please them. Ryan 
presents the seven stories he feels inspired Shakespeare to write The 
Taming of the Shrew, Romeo and Juliet, The Merchant of Venice, As 
You Like It, Hamlet, King Lear and The Winter's Tale. An essay in 
which Ryan talks about the themes, characters and sources Shakespeare 
might have used for the play precedes each folktale. He also brings in 
snippets relating to Shakespeare and his family. Each essay is accom-
panied by small illustrations of the characters and a border introducing 
elements and words from the play. Mayhew's full-page watercolour 
illustrations accompanying each story are dreamy and theatrical. This 
book is a great introduction to children who have never seen a Shake-
speare play, and at the same time offers much to those who have already 
been introduced 

Divided into three major sections, the collection, Terrific Trickster 
Tales from Asia, acquaints the North American reader with Asian trick-
sters. Spagnoli first introduces trickster tales and how to get ready to tell 
them, pointing out that "Everyone loves a trickster, except the one being 
tricked!" Her instructions are excellent and should encourage would-be 
storytellers to relax and enjoy themselves. Twenty-five dis- 

98 

 



 

GAIL DE VOS AND MERLE HARRIS 

tinctive trickster tales comprise the second section of the book. They 
have universal appeal and there is a brief explanation of the origin of 
each tale, telling tips, resources and follow-up activities for each story. 
Part Three "More Ideas and Resources" encourages the reader to explore 
the world of storytelling beyond the trickster tales. Highly recommended. 

Poetry, historical accounts, superstitions, folktales and ballads from 
around the world and featuring the folk that live beneath or sail upon the 
waters, Song of the Sea evokes the watery spirits and adventures of a 
distant time. The collection seems aimed at a young audience and while 
it includes a bibliography, it does not include any source notes for the 
wealth of information contained within its covers. 

Picture book titles: 

Hallworth, Grace. Sing Me a Story: Song-and-Dance Tales from the 
Caribbean. Illustrated by John Clementson. [Little folk] Little 
Rock: August House, 2002. 0 87483 672 7. 

MacDonald, Margaret Read. Fat Cat: A Danish Folktale Retold. Illus-
trated by Julie Paschkis. [Little folk] Little Rock: August House, 
2001. 0 87483 616 6. 

Mora, Pat. The Race of Toad and Deer. Illustrated by Domi. Toronto: 
 Groundwood Books, 2001, 0 88899 434 6. 

Five traditional stories from Jamaica, Haiti, and Trinidad and To-
bago are playfully retold in Sing Me a Story. Musical notation and 
dancing instructions, where applicable, accompany each tale which 
jumps right out of the brilliant pages. Folk art illustrations create a frame 
around each tale to produce this small collection of delightful tales. 

Fat Cat is a combined retelling of the traditional Norwegian tale of 
the Fat Cat and a Czechoslovakian tale, "Kuratko the Terrible," that was 
a long established element in storyteller Margaret Read MacDonald's 
repertoire. Cat and Mouse are friends and when the greedy cat not only 
gulps everyone in sight including his friend and roommate, mouse, 
something has to be done. Mouse to the rescue and Cat no longer is a fat 
hungry cat but a fancy one as well. Folk art illustrations dance across the 
pages of this colourful and rollicking version. Great source notes! 

Pat Mora has provided an adaptation of the Mayan variant of the 
fable of the "Hedgehog and the Hare" in which cooperation in the race 
aids victory in The Race of Toad and Deer. The story was told to the 
author by a mason and scholar in Guatemala. The text is reminiscent of 
the chatter of the jungle and is highly complemented with the rich col- 

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REVIEW ROUNDUP 2003 

ours and shapes of the illustrations by artist Domi of Oaxaca, Mexico. A 
treat to the ears and eyes. 

100 



 

AMERICAN FOLKLORE SOCIETY CHILDREN'S 
FOLKLORE SECTION MEETING 

ALBUQUERQUE, NM  
10 OCTOBER 2003 

Minutes 

President Sean Galvin called the meeting to order at noon in 
Enchantment E of the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Albuquerque, NM. A 
quorum was present. 

Minutes of the Rochester, NY, meeting were approved as published in 
the Children's Folklore Review, volume 25, numbers 1 and 2. 

Reports 

Princilla Ord, although not able to attend the meeting, sent in the 
following report on the following funds: The Opie Fund, $2951,21; the 
Lifetime Membership Fund, $680.73; the Newell Prize Fund, 
$8075.18; and the General Fund, $2381.40. 

C. W. Sullivan III, Children's Folklore Review editor, reported that the 
English Department at East Carolina University continues to support 
the journal at the rate of $2000.00 per year. This amount covers almost 
all of the printing but none of the mailing. Last year's CFR cost 
$2476.00 for printing and mailing. The department also supplies a 
graduate assistant to the journal for 10 hours per week. 

Awards 

Sullivan reported that the Newell Prize this year would be awarded to 
Janice Ackerley for "Gender Issues in the Playground Rhymes of New 
Zealand Children: 1992-2003" and that there was a Newell Prize 
Honorable Mention this year, Anita L. Gambos' "The Ugly Duckling, 
Hans Christian Andersen: A Story of Transformation." Sullivan expects 
both essays will be published in the next Children's Folklore Review. 

Bill Ellis reported that there were two Aesop Award Winners this year: 

Horse Hooves and Chicken Feet: Mexican Folktales. Selected 
by Neil Philip. Illustrated by Jacqueline Mair. New York: 
Clarion, 2003. 



 

CFS MEETING MINUTES 

Mightier Than the Sword: World Folktales for Strong Boys. 
Collected and told by Jane Yolen. Illustrated by Raul Colón. 
San Diego: Sliver Whistle/ Harcourt, 2003. 

There were six Aesop Accolade books this year: 

Invisible Kingdoms: Jewish Tales of Angels, Spirits, and 
Demons. Retold by Howard Schwartz. Illustrated by Stephen 
Fieser. New York: Harper Collins, 2003 

Nelson Mandela's Favorite African Folktales. Written and 
Illustrated by Diverse Hands. New York: Norton, 2002. 

Pajaro Verde: The Green Bird. Joe Haynes. Illustrated by 
Antonio Castro. EI Paso, TX: Cinco Puntos, 2002. 

Somethingfor Nothing. Ann Redisch Stampler. Illustrated by 
Jacqueline M. Cohen. New York: Clarion, 2003. 

The Sun, the Rain, and the Apple Seed: A Novel of Johnny 
Appleseed's Life. Lynda Durrant. New York: Clarion, 2003. 

Yonder Mountain: A Cherokee Legend. Told by Robert H. 
Bushyhead. Written by Kay Thorpe Bannon. Illustrated by 
Kristina Rodana. New York: Cavendish, 2002. 

Neither an Opie Prize nor a Lifetime Achievement award was given out 
this year. 

There was a question about who in the Children's Folklore Section 
should be the contact person for the various awards, and it was decided 
that Margaret Read Macdonald would be the contact person for the 
Aesop Awards, Carole H. Carpenter for the Opie Prize, and C.W. 
Sullivan III for the Newell Prize. 

Old Business 

The problem of the meeting time was discussed again, and Sean Galvin 
agreed to look for a meeting time in less conflict with other meetings 
that members wished or needed to attend. 

Due to printing costs and other factors, the membership decided that the 
Children's Folklore Review should become an annual volume. This will 
not only give us more total pages for the same price, but a more 
aesthetically pleasing product as well. 

102 



 

CFS MEETING MINUTES 

New Business 

The problem of people wishing to join the section without joining the 
American Folklore Society was discussed. At this point, subscribers 
can still get the journal without joining the AFS. 

The amount the American Folklore Society charges the section to 
administer its funds, 12%, was discussed, and the president was 
charged with investigating this situation. 

The membership voted to sell Aesop Award and Accolade stickers to 
publishers and to allow publishers to imprint the insignia themselves on 
the covers of award winners. The established rate will be $100.00 for 
500 labels. 

The membership voted that the section write letters to the Dean of Arts 
and Sciences and the Chair of the English Department at East Carolina 
University complimenting Sullivan on his job as CFR editor and 
thanking the university for its continued support. 

The meeting was adjourned at 1:30 PM. 

Respectfully submitted, 

C.W. Sullivan III 
Secretary Pro Tem 

103 



 

NOTES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS 

Newell Prize Announcement 

The Children's Folklore Section of the American Folklore Society 
annually offers the WW Newell Prize (which includes a cash award) 
for the best student essay on a topic in children's folklore. Students 
must submit their own papers, and published papers are eligible. 
Instructors are asked to encourage students with eligible papers to 
enter the competition. 

Papers must be typed, double-space, and on white paper. On the first 
page include the author's name, academic address, home address, E-
mail address, and telephone number. Deadline for each year's 
competition is September 1st. Submit papers or write for more 
information: Dr. CW Sullivan III, English Department, East 
Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina 27858-4353. 

Temple University Press announces the publication of Yo' Mama! 
New Raps, Toasts, Dozens, Jokes and Children's Rhymes from 
Urban Black America, Onwuchekwa Jemie, editor. For free pages 
from the introduction, go to www.temple.edu/tempress/chapters/1 
452_chl.pdf .For additional information, go to www.temple.edu/ 
tempress/titles/l453 reg.html 

Dr. June Factor, editor, announces that the bi-annual Australian 
journal of children's folklore, Play & Folklore, is now available at 
www.museum.vic.gov.au/playfolklore. She also welcomes contri-
butions for future issues. 

104 

http://www.temple.edu/tempress/chapters/1


 

CONTRIBUTORS 

JANICE ACKERLEY is a Reading Development teacher at 
Ashburton College, New Zealand, and a distance education tutor for 
National Diploma in Children's Literature (Christchurch College of 
Education). Her interest in children's folklore, playground rhymes in 
particular, developed from an ever-expanding collection of play 
ground rhymes gathered from throughout New Zealand as part of the 
Patterns of Language course. Her final papers in her MEd 
(Children's Literature) focused on gender differences (published in 
the Australian journal Play and Folklore, number 44) and gender 
issues arising from close examination of children's playground 
rhymes. 

ANITA L. GAMBOS is a consultant, educator, and public speaker. 
She taught at both the high school and college levels before transi-
tioning to a corporate career in Financial Services. For over 25 
years, Anita was the executive officer heading Corporate Marketing, 
Executive Development, Human Resources, and Employee 
Relations functions. Most recently, she was Chief Learning Officer 
of a global Fortune 100 company. She is currently President of The 
Interplay Group, Inc. (www.theinterplaygroup.com), a consulting 
firm specializing in transformational change for both companies and 
individuals. Anita is also a student of the Storytelling Program at 
Dominican University, San Rafael, CA. 

GAIL DE VOS is a storyteller, author of seven books on 
storytelling and folklore, and Book Review Editor for Children's 
Folklore Review. She is an adjunct professor for the School of 
Library and Information Services at the University of Alberta in 
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, where she teaches courses on 
storytelling, children's literature, and comic books and graphic 
novels. She was resident storyteller at Fort Edmonton Park, bringing 
history alive through stories for over thirteen years and is the 
coordinator of the annual storytelling festival held at the park each 
Labour Day weekend. 

MERLE HARRIS has always been fascinated by stories. She is a 
freelance storyteller and has been a facilitator/trainer for the Parent-
Child Mother Goose Program since 1994. She has told stories in 
schools, libraries, seniors homes, women and juvenile detention 
centers, on the radio and at festivals across Canada, and was resi-
dent storyteller at Fort Edmonton Park. She is co-author with Gail 

105 



 

 CONTRIBUTORS 

de Vos and Celia Barker Lottridge of Telling Tales: Storytelling in 
the Family (University of Alberta Press). 

KAREN HILL McNAMARA holds a Doctorate of Letters from 
Drew University in Madison, New Jersey. She graduated with 
distinction in 2003, and her doctoral dissertation, "Telling Bridget's 
Tale of Hunger: Children's Literature of the Great Irish Famine," 
won the University Prize. Her annotated bibliography of children's 
famine literature was published in Foilsiu (2003), an 
interdisciplinary journal of Irish Studies. She has presented fourteen 
papers on Irish/American children's and young adult literature at 
national and international conferences. She is scheduled to teach in 
The Caspersen School of Graduate Studies at Drew University. 

106 


	Stereotypes
	Taboo
	My boyfriend said to me
	So tell all the people, who don't want to get
	You're a bloody fool!






