Why is this a funny poem?
By ibelle09
@ibelle09 (155)
China
May 25, 2009 9:34am CST
Hi, I need you guys help on this funny poem. I found this one in my teaching material. But I find it is hard for me to understand it as a funny poem. And I have to explain it to my students. HELP!
There was an old man on the Border.
---by Edward Lear
There was an old man on the Border,
Who lived in the utmost disorder;
He danced with the cat, and made tea in his hat.
Which vexed all the folks on the Border.
Does border mean the place between two countries here? or others ? Help?
1 person likes this
4 responses
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
25 May 09
'Border' here means the boundary between two countries (probably Scotland and England, in this case).
Edward Lear is well-known for his Nonsense poetry for which he used the Limerick format a great deal. The main object of his poems (and many other Limericks) was to find something unlikely to rhyme with a place name and to construct a small (and equally unlikely) story around it which he encapsulated in this form.
Limericks are relatively easy to write but the meter and rhyme scheme are quite strict. You could have your students write some for themselves, either in English or their own language.
1 person likes this
@owlwings (43910)
• Cambridge, England
25 May 09
There's more information about the Limerick form (and the meter in which it's usually written) here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limerick_(poetry)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphibrach
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anapaest
@Jengors (8)
• United States
6 Jun 09
I think that in this poem he is actually using the word Border in two different ways.
1. the second is in reference of the location of the town .. border between two countries.
2. The first is in reference to the man's sanity. That he is on the border between sanity and insanity.
Hope that helps ...
@snowy22315 (182175)
• United States
25 May 09
Well, the funny part of the poem is about the cat making tea in his hat. I think the use of the "border" is just incidental. I don't really think that has anything to do with the poem. By border they just mean border of any two places city, town country etc. The poet probably mostly picked the word because it rhymed with disorder.
@imstanding (35)
• United States
26 May 09
Personally I do not think it is very funny myself. Do you have to use this one or can you choose any funny poem?
