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Saturday, May 30, 2009

Baa..Baa..Black Sheep

You guys remember one of the famous nursery rhyme baa..baa..black sheep?Y'know how it goes :

Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir,
Three bags full.
One for the master,
One for the dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.

So, when i heard this rhyme the other day (courtesy of my nieces), it made me think that mayb this is not just a nursery rhyme about a sheep who had extra wool and wanted to give away..but it actually has a story behind it..


Well, traditionally, the rhyme is seen as a complaint of the oppressed common people, the “little boy who lives in the lane,” against the King, “my Master,” who took their wool and against the oppressively wealthy nobility, “my Dame.”
The most obvious historical incidence of unrest among those oppressed by the Master and the Dame who collect all the wool dates back to 1275 when Edward I imposed an export tax that allowed him to collect a tax on any wool exported from any port in the country.
Unpredictable, huh?I was dumbfounded too believe me..who would hv guessed that the rhyme was a symbol of taxes. there was also this moral value that came with it when it was published in Mother Goose's Melody..it said : “Bad habits are easier conquered today than tomorrow. One wonders what bad habits have to do with the sheep and the recipients of his wool. Perhaps, the moral would have had more impact if it read 'Baaaahd habits.'" muahahaha...that got me going..
And i wonder why the sheep is black rite? I mean, why must it be black.white wool n black would have the same demand since u cn dye white wool into black. But unfortunately, it's not becoz it's my fav color (dude, this rhyme was written 200 years ago) but i think it's becoz the word 'black sheep' usually indicates that that someone is not trustworthy..hmm..made me think of all d ppl who had done wrong to me.....
Anyway,
so i went to this site where they had interpretations on nursery rhyme n i found some really2 good n weird stuff..



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