| Ring A Ring O'roses |
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VARIATIONS The words of Ring a Ring O'Roses differ by region, although the tune remains consistent. The Playground Game that accompanies these verses also changes by region, but the most common form consists of participants standing a circle and holding hands, followed by skipping in one direction as they sing the tune that accompanies these verses. At the end of the line ''We all fall down'', the group usually falls down into a heap.
PLAGUE INTERPRETATION A popular misinterpretationReferenced in Opie, Iona & Peter, ed 'The Oxford History of Nursery Rhymes', New York, OUP 1951, p365 connects the poem with the Great Plague Of London in 1665 , or perhaps earlier outbreaks of Bubonic Plague in England ;Referenced in Opie, Iona & Peter, ed 'The Oxford History of Nursery Rhymes', New York, OUP 1951, p354 however, there is no evidence that Ring a Ring O'Roses and the plague were connected, until it was proposed in the 20th century.1 Regardless, this interpretation has entered into popular culture and is often used to reference the plague obliquely.Title of "Ashes" in the New Scientist review: http://www.newscientist.com/channel/health/mg17223184.000 This plague link seems to originate with the movement for finding origins of folk-songs, which was popular in the early 20th century.Opie, op cit, "The invariable sneezing and falling down in modern English versions has given would-be origin finders the opportunity to say that the rhyme dates back to the days of the Great Plague. A rosy rash, they allege, was a symptom of the plague, Posies of herbs were carried as protection, Sneezing was a final fatal symptom, and 'all fall down' was exactly what happened." For example, according to the common forms of the plague interpretation, the 'falling down' has always involved dropping to the ground as the rhyme is recited, evoking the death from the plague. This conjecture has evolved into a complex explanation suggesting possible plague interpretations for every line. For other attempts to attribute 'hidden meaning' to other such rhymes see Sing A Song Of Sixpence , Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary , and Cock Robin . According to this interpretation, the first line evokes the round red Rash that would break out on the skin of plague victims. The second line's "pocket full of Posies " would have been a pocket in the garment of a victim filled with something fragrant, such as Flowers that aimed to conceal the smell from the sores and the dying people. Alternatively it referred to the common belief that fresh-smelling flowers, Nosegay s, and Pomander s would purify the air around them thus warding off disease as was believed from the Miasma Theory Of Disease . A third possibility includes the idea that "posies" are derived from an Old English word for pus, in which case the pocket would be referring to the swelling sore. Finally: "atishoo, atishoo," the sneezing before "we all fall down", the eventual succumbing to death. European and 19th century versions of the rhyme suggest that this 'fall' was not a literal falling down, but a Curtsy or other form of bending movement that was common in other dramatic singing games.Opie, op cit, p365, note: Chants Populaire du Languedoc: 'Branle, calandre, La Fille d'Alexandre, La pêche bien mûre, Le rosier tout fleuri, Coucou toupi' — En disant 'coucou toupi', tous les enfants quie forment la ronde, s'accroupissent' Moreover, due to the wide variety of versions sharing the same dance and the same tune, the Opies and many scholars since conclude that the tune and the dance-game form the core of 'Ring a Ring O'Roses', rather than the words which are popular today. Before 1898 there appeared to be no English-language standardisation of the words, and Lady GommeGomme, Alice B., Lady, editor, The Traditional Games of England, Scotland and Ireland (1894-8), cited in Opie, op cit collected 12 versions of the game, only one of which is similar to the ones that are conjecturally linked to the plague. The plague interpretation is generally considered by scholars to be completely baseless.2 It is first cited in 1951 by Peter Opie and Iona Opie .Opie, Iona & Peter, ed 'The Oxford History of Nursery Rhymes', New York, OUP 1951, p354 It thus forms an important reference for 20th and 21st century culture, but has never been authentically linked to any early version of the rhyme, and the evidence points strongly against it. In 1994 , Nu-metal band Korn released a song called Shoots And Ladders on their self-titled debut album. The lyrics are a compilation of nursery rhymes and "Ring Around the Rosie" is sung three times in the song. Lead singer Jonathon Davis stated that kids don't seem to know the dark meanings of the rhymes, and that, for example, "Ring Around the Rosie" is about the Black Plague. REFERENCES |
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