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There was an old lady
who swallowed a fly
I don't know why
she swallowed a fly -
perhaps she'll die!
There was an old lady
who swallowed a spider,
That wriggled and wiggled
and tiggled inside her;
She swallowed the spider
to catch the fly;
I don't know why
she swallowed a fly -
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old lady
who swallowed a bird;
How absurd to swallow a bird.
She swallowed the bird
to catch the spider,
She swallowed the spider
to catch the fly;
I don't know why
she swallowed a fly -
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old lady who swallowed a cat;
Fancy that to swallow a cat!
She swallowed the cat
to catch the bird,
She swallowed the bird
to catch the spider,
She swallowed the spider
to catch the fly;
I don't know why she swallowed a fly - Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old lady
that swallowed a dog;
What a hog, to swallow a dog;
She swallowed the dog
to catch the cat,
She swallowed the cat
to catch the bird,
She swallowed the bird
to catch the spider,
She swallowed the spider
to catch the fly;
I don't know why
she swallowed a fly -
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old lady
who swallowed a cow,
I don't know how
she swallowed a cow;
She swallowed the cow
to catch the dog,
She swallowed the dog
to catch the cat,
She swallowed the cat
to catch the bird,
She swallowed the bird
to catch the spider,
She swallowed the spider
to catch the fly;
I don't know why
she swallowed a fly -
Perhaps she'll die!
There was an old lady who swallowed a horse...
She's dead, of course!
Nonsense
nursery rhyme which aids memory retention
A favourite nonsense nursery rhyme amongst most children
whose famous lyrics aid memory retention and whose origins have no
basis in history! Just look
at a child's face the first time the rhyme is repeated to them!
Sheer delight in what is happening - the imagery paints a very
strong picture which stimulates the imagination whilst clarifying
the relative size and order of all of the animals mentioned. The words
become more incredulous as they progress and there is almost a
sense of relief and also astonishment at the abrupt ending of the
tale! There is no basis for the words and lyrics in history -it is
perhaps better described as a traditional folksong, the lyrics of
which have been set to music and recorded by many various artists. |
