The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren

by Opie, Iona; Opie, Peter; Warner, Marina

• ISBN13: 9780940322691
• ISBN10: 0940322692
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-08-31
• Publisher: NYRB Classics

Summary

First published in 1959, Iona and Peter Opie'sThe Lore and Language of Schoolchildrenis a pathbreaking work of scholarship that is also a splendid and enduring work of literature. Going outside the nursery, with its assortment of parent-approved entertainments, to observe and investigate the day-to-day creative intelligence and activities of children, the Opies bring to life the rites and rhymes, jokes and jeers, laws, games, and secret spells of what has been called "the greatest of savage tribes, and the only one which shows no signs of dying out."

Author Biography

Iona (1923-2017) and Peter Opie (1918-1982) began their research together in 1944. Fifteen years later, they published The Lore and Language of Schoolchildren and took their places as, to quote The Guardian, “the supreme archivists of the folklore movement.” Since that time, they have jointly published The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, The Classic Fairy Tales, and Children’s Game in Street and Playground. After Peter Opie’s death in 1982, Iona Opie carried on with their work under his name as well as her own.

Marina Warner’s studies of religion, mythology, and fairy tales include Alone of All Her Sex: The Myth and the Cult of the Virgin Mary, From the Beast to the Blonde, and Stranger Magic (National Book Critics Circle Award for Literary Criticism; Truman Capote Prize). A Fellow of the British Academy, Warner is also a professor of English and creative writing at Birkbeck College, London. In 2015 she was given the Holberg Prize.

Table of Contents

Introduction	ix
Preface	xxi
Acknowledgments	xxix
List of Distribution Maps	xxxix
Introductory	1	(16)
Continuity
Apparent Uniformity
Speed of Oral Transmission
Wear and Repair during Transmission
Sources of the Rhymes
Regional Variation
Just for Fun	17	(24)
Satirical Rhymes
Nonsense Rhymes
Tangletalk
Rhymes and Songs in Scotland
Nonsense Verse in Weales
Puns, Tongue Twisters, and Tales which Never End
Ghoulism
Spookies
Scout and Guide Songs
Wit and Repartee	41	(16)
Crooked Answers
Having the Last Word
Juvenile Correctives
Wordsmanship
Stake Jokes and Stale News
Street Jeers
Guile	57	(16)
Tricks Inflicting Pain
``Made You Look''
Spitting Jokes
Trick Bets
Self-incrimination Traps
Minor Imbecilities
Trick Spelling and Arithmetic
Either-Way Tricks
Embarrassers
Riddles	73	(14)
True Riddles
Rhyming Riddles
Punning Riddles
Conundrums
Wellerisms
Catch Riddles
The Fun of Ridding
Parody and Impropriety	87	(11)
Hymns and Carols
Nursery Rhymes
Popular Songs
Recitations
The Improper
Topical Rhymes	98	(23)
1930-1939
World War II
Victory Songs
1945-1958
Legendary Heroes
Lottie Collins
Charlie Chaplin
Mickey Mouse
Popeye
Shirley Temple and Deanna Durbin
Dog Film Stars
Betty Grable
Beefcake and Cheesecake
British Stars
Davy Crockett
Code of Oral Legislation	121	(33)
Affirmation
Testing Truthfulness
Bets
Bargain Making
Swopping
Giving
Gaining Possession
Claiming Precedence
Avoiding
Secret Keeping
Obtaining Respite
Nicknames and Epithets	154	(21)
Characteristics of Schoolchild Language
Their Own Name
Other People's Names
Traditional Nicknames
Approval and Disapproval
School Dinners
Drinks
Ice Creams
Sweets
Greedy-guts
Fatties
Skinnies
Lankies
Little 'Uns
Red Heads
The Funny Faced
Spectacles
School Subjects
Unpopular Children: Jeers and Torments	175	(31)
Spoil-sports, Sourpusses, Spitfires
Clever-dicks
Dafties, Fools, Dunces
Copy-cats, Cribbers, Cheats
Swankpots
Nosey Parkers
Stare-cats
Cowards
Cry-babies
Sneaks
Crawlers
Bullies
Sending Away
Inducing Quiet
Intimidation
Fighting
Retribution
Ordeals
Tortures
Hair Pulling
Half-Belief	206	(26)
Juvenile Attitude to Folklore
Ambulances
Omens on the Way to School
Lines on Pavements
Finding Things
Luck in Exams
Luck in Games
Courage
Children's Calendar	232	(61)
New Year's Day
St. Valentine's Day
Shrove Tuesday
Ash Wednesday
Kissing Friday
Mothering Sunday
April Fool's Day
Taily Day
Good Friday
Easter
Mischief Night (30 April)
May Day
Garland Day
Empire Day
Royal Oak Day
St. James's Day
Punkie Night
Hallowe'en
All Souls' Day
Mischief Night (4 November)
Guy Fawkes Day
Christmas Coming
Christmas
St. Stephen's Day
New Year's Eve
Occasional Customs	293	(13)
New Boys and Initiation Rites
Special Holidays
End of Term
First of the Month
Birthdays
New Clothes
At Weddings
When Teeth Come Out
Some Curiosities	306	(17)
The Million Bus Tickets
Levitation
Saying the Same Thing at Once
Curing Warts
Cocking Snooks
Secret Languages
Friendship and Fortune	323	(20)
Making and Breaking Friends
Attitudes to Opposites Sex
Character Reading
Love Tokens
Bus Tickets
Conveying, Ensuring, and Testing Affection
Finding Sweetheart's Name or Identity
Telling Fortunes
Partnership	343	(18)
Sectarian Rhymes
Salvation Army
Boys' Brigade and Boy Scouts
Elections
Sports
Village Rivalry
School Rivalry
The Child and Authority	361	(16)
Types of Teachers
Songs about Teachers
Teachers' Jokes
Latecomers
Late Teachers
Time to Go Home?
The Police
Playing Truant
Keeping Lookout
Beatings
Condolence
Pranks	377	(16)
Door Knocking and Bell Ringing
Prevalence of Pranks
Pedestrian Duping
Booby Traps
Kicking Doors
Mechanical Knocking
Window Tapping
Door Tied to Movable Object
Door Tied to Immovable Object
Geographical Index	393	(8)
First Line Index	401	(8)
General Index	409