Baa Baa Black Sheep

'Baa baa black sheep,
have you any wool,
yes sir yes sir,
three bags full,
one for the master,
one for the dame,
and one for the little boy,
who lives down the lane.'

This well known nursery rhyme has caught my attention because of the language used. The 'Baa baa' at the beginning of the rhyme is onomatopoeia. This catches the young children's attention as it sounds just like it's spelt and its easy for them to understand. It also uses alliteration in the first line of the stanza which easily slips off the tongue. When we read this rhyme we also stereotype that the sheep is a male without even noticing.

The next thing which i find intriguing is how it is suggesting that the sheep is black when most commonly we think of sheeps' as being white. The second line of the stanza i think is ridiculous as they're asking a sheep if it 'has any wool', obviously it does, (unless it's been shaved) but you would be able to tell that by looking at it. However i may find this silly but to children it's catchy and they're interested in this language.

Furthermore, i am guessing that the 'yes sir, yes sir' part of the rhyme is the sheep responding. We can tell that this rhyme has male dominance because of how 'we are' (the readers of the rhyme) mentioned as 'sir'. This is due to the time period in which this rhyme was formed, when they were suggested as having a higher authority.

:)