Little Miss Muffet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Little Miss Muffet" is a nursery rhyme. It 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, a 16th century English entomologist, for his step-daughters; others claim it refers to Mary, Queen of Scots, who was said to have been frightened by John Knox, a Scottish religious reformer in the 16th century. The latter explanation is doubted by most literary scholars, who note that stories linking folk tales or songs to political events are a common urban legend.
A "tuffet" is a small stool, often three-legged and topped with a cushion, or a tuft of earth and grass. Or the last name "Muffet" may be a play on the word "muffin", or simply invented to rhyme with "tuffet".
[edit] Lyrics
- 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!
Like most nursery rhymes, Little Miss Muffet has made many appearances in popular culture. An example of this occurs in Roman Dirge's comic, Lenore the Cute Little Dead Girl, in which Lenore is not afraid of the spider and in the place of being frightened away, swats it with a paddle. In a new attempt to scare Lenore, the spider in the rhyme is replaced by Mr. Rogers.
[edit] External links
- North Mymms - Parish and People A feature about the author of Little Miss Muffet
- Was Little Miss Muffet a local girl? An article about the origins of Little Miss Muffet
