Animals
Animals wander through nursery rhymes as if they owned the place. In earlier centuries, children lived close to creatures of every kind — in fields, barns, kitchens, and farmyards — so it’s no surprise they slipped straight into the verses sung at home. Some behave just as expected, like the loyal lamb in Mary Had a Little Lamb, while others stray into mild absurdity, such as the lost flock in Little Bo Peep.
Animals made perfect story characters: familiar, friendly, and occasionally guilty of the same mischief as children. Cats scold and travel in Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat, cows perform impressive nighttime athletics in Hey Diddle Diddle, and mice create exactly the sort of trouble young listeners understand in Three Blind Mice.
These rhymes survived for generations because they were easy to picture and easy to love. Whether the behavior is realistic, exaggerated, or wildly impossible, the animals give each rhyme its heartbeat — and a touch of good-natured chaos.
