Please Read this first. (A Necessary Update on 1/27/2018)

While writing a recent reply to a comment on this post, I used the phrase "aha moment". I completely understand how using that phrase could hurt a fellow Steemian (@redwellies) who has been writing a series of posts about the origins of nursery rhymes and children's songs.

Please check out some of her work here:

• Mary, Mary Quite Contracy
• London Bridge is falling down
• Three Blind Mice

It would be a lie to say that interacting with @redwellies did not spark my interest in the topic. I should have credited her in my post for sparking this new interest, and I am sorry that I did not do so.

The "aha" moment (that I did not explain well) was that I was watching NCIS. One of the characters (Abby Sciuto) said something like, "You do realize that Humpty Dumpty is not an egg?" My "aha" moment was that I realized that my brain had tricked me into thinking that Humpty Dumpty was an egg even though the nursery rhyme never states that as a fact. I don't believe that I would have even given it much thought had I not been interacting with @redwellies and her recent posts on the topic.

At this time, I have no intention of writing any other origin stories about nursery rhymes. I hope you will support @redwellies as she does. I deeply regret hurting @redwellies. For that, I am truly sorry.

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The Nursery Rhyme

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses
And all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty Dumpty
Together again.

So Why Do We Envision Humpty Dumpty As An Egg?

Though first printed in 1810, the "Humpty Dumpty" nursery rhyme did not become famous until the title character was mentioned in Through The Looking Glass (which was written by Lewis Caroll in 1871). Through The Looking Glass is a sequel to the classic Alice's Adventure in Wonderland.

But if you think that "Humpty Dumpty" was written as a metaphor to describe the fragile nature of life or a warning against putting all of your eggs in one basket, then you are wrong!

I am cracking myself up. That was an egg-cellant pun by the way!

My favorite explanation of the Humpty Dumpty origin story leads us to 15th century England.

Humpty Dumpty Was A Nickname

The term Humpty Dumpty was a nickname that was given to large people. There are a few prominent Englishmen who may be in the running for the inspiration of this classic nursery rhyme.

• Charles I who was overthrown by a Puritan majority in Parliament
• King Richard III who defeated at the Battle of Bosworth
• Cardinal Wolsey who died of illness while traveling to London for his trial

Although the nursery rhyme may have been inspired by several English Humpty Dumpty's, my favorite explanation is that Humpty Dumpty was a large CANON!

Here are some key facts from the backstory:

• England was engaged in a civil war in 1648.
• Royalist forces strengthened their defenses by placing a canon, called Humpty Dumpty, on the roof of a church known as 'St Mary's by the Wall'.
• The Parliamentarians had seized the city of Colchester.
• A canon gunner known as 'One-Eyed Jack Thompson' had caused significant damage to the attacking troops.
• The Parliamentarians executed revenge with a successful hit to the tower that held Humpty Dumpty. Both Humpty Dumpty and the gunner came tumbling down.
• The Royalist forces (the king's horses and men) were not able to return the canon to its prior position of attack.
• About two weeks later, Royalists opened the gate of Colchester and surrendered to the Parliamentarians.

The Life Lesson

I realize that I am not very familiar with the origin stories of many nursery rhymes and children's songs that I learned as a child. For whatever reason, I was never challenged to study the history and meaning of these works. As a result, my interaction with these classics has been shallow and lacking self-introspection.

But as I come to this turning point, I choose

• To take time to think about the original meaning and message of a literary work
• To help my children investigate the layers of a literary work (even those that seem as simple as a nursery rhyme).
• To not simply accept someone else's interpretation without due diligence

Your Turn

Let's continue the conversation in the comments section.

1. Did you think that Humpty Dumpty was an egg?
2. What caused you to make that conclusion?
3. Have you ever read Through A Looking Glass?
4. Are there other nursery rhymes, children's songs, or work of literacy that you want to investigate now?

Thanks for stopping by!

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Image Source:
https://pixabay.com/en/humpty-dumpty-humpty-dumpty-reading-1851204/

Data Source:
http://myths.e2bn.org/mythsandlegends/origins1-humpty-dumpty-and-the-fall-of-colchester.html