| "Little Miss Muffet" Roud #20605 |
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William Wallace Denslow's illustrations for "Little Miss Muffet", from a 1901 edition of Mother Goose |
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| Written by | Traditional |
|---|---|
| Published | 1805 |
| Written | England |
| Language | English |
| Form | Nursery rhyme |
"Little Miss Muffet" is a nursery rhyme, one of the most commonly printed in the mid-twentieth century.[1] It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 20605.
Contents |
- Little Miss Muffet
- Sat on a tuffet,
- Eating her curds and whey;
- Along came a spider,
- Who sat down beside her
- And frightened Miss Muffet away.[1]
The rhyme first appeared in print in 1805, in a book titled Songs for the Nursery. Like many such rhymes, its origins are unclear. Some claim it was written by Dr. Thomas Muffet (d.1604), a seventeenth-century English entomologist, regarding his stepdaughter Patience; others claim it refers to Mary, Queen of Scots (1543–87), who was said to have been frightened by religious reformer John Knox (1510–72).[2] The former explanation is speculative and the latter is doubted by most literary scholars, who note that stories linking folk tales or songs to political events are often urban legends.[1]
There is also an alternative set of lyrics which has been taught in some countries where whey is not a common food stuff.[3] In the nineteenth century the rhyme existed in many alternative versions including: 'Little Mary Ester, Sat upon a tester' (1812); 'Little Miss Mopsey, Sat in the shopsey' (1842). These rhymes may be parodies of whichever is the original.[1]
In 1868, the supposed partner of Walt Whitman, Peter Doyle, allegedly wrote a version of little Miss Muffet that some experts believe could be a metaphorical representation of their relationship.
- Little Miss Man
- Had a great plan
- to get her man to love
- Along came the writer
- Who sat down beside her
- and said "you fit like a glove."
The poem was signed 16.4, which was Whitman's method of concealing Doyle's identity,[4] and is thought to represent the sudden and explosive sexual relationship that is rumored to have existed between the two. In the 1960 revue Beyond the Fringe, the English humourist and musician Dudley Moore sang "Little Miss Muffet" in the style of Peter Pears and as if it had been set to music by Benjamin Britten.
There have been many modern uses and adaptations of Little Miss Muffet, most recently video games and interactive apps. A notable example are the award winning iOS and Mac OS X apps Little Miss Muffet HD[5] and Little Miss Muffet[6] published by Tantrum Solutions.