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Style - Imagery and Sounds Poetry – Limericks (a brief history)
Lear and the Limerick
Edward Lear (1812–46) was an artist but is remembered more as the ‘father of English nonsense verse’. Just for fun, he wrote and illustrated humorous verse to entertain the children of an earl with whom he was staying from 1832 to 1836. His whimsical works were not published until 1846. Lear wrote verse with an AABBA rhyming pattern, usually repeating in the last line the rhyming word used in the first line. The rhythm and length of lines also follows an AABBA pattern. There was an Old Lady of France, Who taught little Ducklings to dance; When she said, “Tick-a-tack!” They only said, “Quack!” Which grieved that Old Lady of France. A A B B A
History of the limerick
Rhyming pattern Rhythm
Line length
Lear’s published poems became so popular that others began to create their own verse based on his style. By 1896, the word limerick meant the style of verse written by Lear. (It is also the name of a city in Ireland.) The first two lines of a limerick often introduce a character(s), a setting and a problem. The third and fourth lines provide a twist in the plot that leads to a clever, witty conclusion in the last line. There was an Old Person of Dutton, Whose head was as small as a button, So, to make it look big, He purchased a wig And rapidly rushed about Dutton. character, setting problem twist or ‘solution’ conclusion
Typical plot of a limerick
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Unit 13 • Poetry - Limericks (A Brief History)
Modern poets also use a third rhyming word in the last line to make the verse more interesting. A naughty young child at a zoo Teased a tortoise and tall kangaroo. But, by the look of the smile On that big crocodile, I think his teasing has ended, don’t you?
RM
Last line has a new rhyme word.
Lear’s poems were invariably about eccentric people from known places. Modern limericks can be about people and places too, but they can also be clever plays on words. Whatever the topic, the purpose is always the same: to use nonsense to make the reader laugh.
Making the audience laugh
Reading and Comprehension
Exploring the text
Literal
1. What was Edward Lear’s main profession? 2. What is the meaning of the word limerick?
Inferential
3. What are the three main parts of the plot in a limerick? 4. What does the text mean when it states that Lear was the ‘father of English nonsense verse’?
Creative
5. Use the rhyming word prance or chance to write a new last line for Lear’s poem ‘There was an Old Lady of France’. 6. What is your favourite nonsense verse? Write it.
Critical
7. Limericks are supposed to make the reader laugh. Which of the three limericks in the text do you think does this best? Explain why. 8. Do you prefer the modern limerick or the style of Lear’s original verse? Why?
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Technique and style
People enjoy reading and writing funny verse, and the limerick is a popular verse form. Here are some hints about writing limericks. Making the audience laugh Limericks tell very short tales with the purpose of making the audience laugh. The writer needs to think of a funny situation about a character (person or animal) in a setting (place). Plot A limerick has five lines that follow a plot, or a story pattern. The plot describes the character(s), setting, problem, story twist and conclusion. Line 1: Introduce the character(s) and setting Line 2: Describe a problem Lines 3 and 4: Invent a twist or ‘solution’ to the problem Line 5: Provide a conclusion – something funny that happens to the character Rhyme The rhyming pattern of a limerick is AABBA. The writer needs to find three rhyming words for lines 1, 2 and 5, and two rhyming words for lines 3 and 4. Once the writer has an idea for the plot, the next step is to make lists of rhyming words that might make sense with that idea. Some words have very common ending sounds. These words are easier to use in a verse because they have many rhyming possibilities. For example: /oo/ as in too: you, do, shoe, true, glue, due, knew, grew, through, boo, who /ay/ as in day: ray, say, may, play, today, convey, obey, weigh, neigh, entrée Rhythm Limericks have a 1-2-3, 1-2-3 pattern in the rhythm. Each number represents a syllable. The ‘1’ syllable is stressed; the ‘2’ and ‘3’ syllables are not stressed. There was an Old Person of Dutton 1 - 2 - 3 1 - 2 - 3 1 - 2 Nonsense What happens in the plot of a limerick can be as silly as you wish. Limericks are funny mostly because they are nonsense. Sometimes they are also funny because of a clever use of words. Here is a famous old example. A tutor who tooted her flute Tried to tutor two tooters to toot. Said the two to the tutor, “Is it harder to toot or To tutor two tooters to toot?” (Anon. from Wise and Wacky Works)
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Unit 13 • Poetry - Limericks (A Brief History)
Writing Project
Ideas
Write your own limerick. Here are some ideas. • Search an atlas for interesting place names with easy rhyming words. Begin your limerick with the words: There was a young person from … (place name) • Begin your limerick with a line about a person’s name. There was a young woman named Rose, Who … (goes, toes, froze, close, nose, those, grows, shows). Write a first line for your limerick. In a small group, brainstorm rhyming words for each other’s first line. Use these rhyming words to list possible ideas for the rest of your verse. Read the section on technique and style for ideas on creating a story for your verse. Find out what part of the story is told on each line. Check your list of rhyming words and ideas to find words that you can use to tell a story in your verse. Write a draft verse by trying one of the ideas and rhymes in your list. If the idea does not work, think of another way to say the same idea. If that doesn’t work, choose another idea to explore. Keep trying ideas until one works. It is easier to change words and try new ideas if you use a word processor.
Planning
• • • • • • • • •
Organising
Drafting
Writing Skills
Using references
1. Style guide: Rhyme and rhythm
Limericks depend on rhyme and rhythm for their poetic style. Rhythm is based on the syllables in the words and rhyme is based on the end sound of words. The following two lines have the same rhythm and rhyme. There was an Old Person of Dutton, Whose head was as small as a button, a. b. c. In your Martin’s Young Writers Guide, look up rhyme and syllable. In a small group, discuss the examples given in your Writers Guide. Compare them to the text samples in Lear and the Limerick. Read your writing draft to the others in your group so they can listen to its rhymes and rhythm. Ask them for their comments.
• •
Editor’s hint
Sometimes an idea just won’t work in a limerick no matter how hard you try. If this happens, simply leave it and try another one. If your idea almost works but you can’t think of a line for the middle or end, ask someone to act as your editor and to try to think of an idea to finish the poem. This person will look at your draft in a new way and might think of something you couldn’t see.
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Writing Skills (continued)
2. Thesaurus
Sometimes a word in a poem might have the right meaning but the wrong number of syllables. Listen to the difference between these lines. A bad young person at a zoo, Annoyed a tortoise and ape too. a. b. Use your thesaurus to find words that mean the same as the words bad, young, person and annoyed but have a different number of syllables (beats). Also, think of other animal names that could be used. In a class shared-writing session, experiment with ways you can use the new words you have found to improve the rhythm of these lines.
Word knowledge
1. Usage
Syllables
Syllables in words are important for the rhythm in lines of poetry. Imagine how these lines would sound if certain words were changed for synonyms that had a different number of syllables (beats). a. Discuss how a different number of syllables – even though words might have the same meaning – upsets the rhythm of the verse. b. Check your writing project to see if your lines have a consistent rhythm. If a word or phrase has an awkward number of beats, use your thesaurus to find words that can replace it. Limericks have an AABBA rhyme pattern. There are many different rhyme patterns you can use in poetry. a. Look up rhyme in your Martin’s Young Writers Guide. Find out about different rhyming patterns. b. Check your writing project to see if the rhyming pattern in your limerick is AABBA. If it isn’t, in a small group brainstorm words and ideas you could use to correct it. He purchased a wig purchased: bought, got, wore
And rapidly rushed about Dutton rapidly: quickly, soon Which grieved that Old Lady of France
Rhyme patterns
grieved: saddened, worried, exasperated On that big crocodile big: enormous, humungous, colossal
2. Punctuation
Brackets ( )
In the text, the writer uses brackets in various ways. Edward Lear (1812–46) … (It is also the name of a city in Ireland.) The first two lines often introduce character(s) … a. b. c. Look up brackets in your Martin’s Young Writers Guide and find out how brackets are used. In a small group, discuss the different uses of brackets in the sample text. Check your writing project to see whether brackets would be useful in your limerick.
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Hyphen, en dash (-)
In the text, the writer uses hyphens and an en dash. Edward Lear (1812–46) … When she said, “Tick-a-tack!” a. b. c. Look up hyphen and en dash in your Martin’s Young Writers Guide and find out how they are used. Find out the difference between a hyphen and an en dash. Check your writing for compound words that might need a hyphen.
Quac
k!
3. Spelling: Rhyme
Rhyme depends on the end sounds in words. Just because two words rhyme does not mean they have the same spelling pattern. Most sounds can be spelled in more than one way. Here is an example from the text. zoo – you a. In a small group, brainstorm rhyming words for these sounds. Write your rhyming words. /oo/ as in you /eez/ as in please /ort/ as in short /ay/ as in day b. c. d. Do word searches in a digital dictionary to find words that end with the same sounds. Find as many different ways to spell each sound as you can. Discuss which sounds are the easiest to use in poems because they have plenty of rhyming words.
Qu
ac
k!
Limericks are very short poems. In Edward Lear’s time people at a party would take turns to recite a limerick and make people laugh. • • • •
Performance and Publication
Action
You can take turns with other class members to read your limerick to the class, as if you are at a party, entertaining guests. Practise reading your limerick until you can recite it from memory.
Here is a picture book of modern limericks you might like to read: There Was a Big Fish…, J. Brian and G. Pascoe, illustrated by S. Woolman (Era). Search your school library for other books of limericks.
Beyond the text
Speech hints
As you read or recite a limerick, it is important to use the rhythm to keep the story ‘bouncing’ along. As you practise reading your limerick, notice which syllables need to be stressed. You can underline these syllables to remind you to stress them. Comedians often pause for a moment before they say the funny line of a joke. The last line of a limerick is the funny line because it ends the short tale with a surprise. So pause at the end of the fourth line to make your audience listen carefully for the funny last line.
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