Therefore, nowadays black sheep often end up in the pot. Black sheep, whose wool is mixed with white wool, have wool of a poorer value because it is more difficult, if not impossible, to dye. Therefore, the expression “black sheep“ must be from a more recent date, because only in recent times are most of the sheep white. In the middle ages there were a lot of sheep breeds and it is very well possible that all sheep were black, brown, white or speckled. Concerning the colour BLACK sheep, some people may think of the famous “black sheep“ - a scoundrel, an outcast, someone out of the ordinary - but the widespread idea is that the song is about taxes imposed on wool in the middle ages. It seems that there is no logical reason for addressing the question to a sheep and therefore it is probably all about the phonetics. The correct version, which would word as well with the music, because the amount of syllables are the same would be:īut we must admit that this doesn’ t work very well with the sheep’s cry of “baa, baa“. This question could be addressed to the sheperd of the herd or to the owner, but not to a sheep. Another issue is that the question, “Have you any wool?“ is directed to the sheep and that doesn’ t make any sense. There is no doubt that the black sheep is a problem, but this problem has nothing to do with the colour of the sheep, but what the sheep can provide. The supporter of this idea sees the a relationship between this song and the slave trade, but it is impossible to find any concrete facts supporting this affirmation. It can be supposed that a lot of people have heard the debate about whether the nursery rhyme “Baa, Baa, black sheep“ is racist and whether it should be banned from school.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
December 2022
Categories |