In the American west, it was very common to sing "Two Babes in the
Woods" as a lullabye. This three-verse song, distilled from an 18th
century broadside of some 30 or more wretched stanzas, depicts the death
of two young children who are led into the woods and abandoned. Old
timers have told me that they believe their mothers sang it both to
express their own parental anxieties about children wandering away into
the prairies or deep forests, and to instill fear in the kids themselves
about the price of getting lost in a wilderness. Hearing the song today
brings tears to the eyes of many older people who immediately relate the
song to the concerns of their mothers.
Lullabyes may seem trivial or "childish," but I think they carry a
heavy load of important cultural nuance. Cheers of encouragement to
anyone who studies them more fully!
Barre Toelken
Utah State University
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