by Colette Georgii

Created on: July 12, 2008   Last Updated: July 18, 2008

Analyzing the Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear

Edward Lear (1812-1888) was an artist who illustrated his own poetry books and made his living through drawing. He wrote nonsense verse and is known as the Father of the Limerick.

When under the patronage of the Earl of Derby he composed a book of nonsense for the Earl's children. He liked making up nonsense words and putting impossible unions together such as the Owl and the Pussycat.

The Owl and the Pussycat and how they begin their romance in their pea green boat is the love story of two people planning to get married, and how they search for a ring, just as most people planning to wed, search for rings.

In this delightful rhyme they buy the ring from a pig and are married by the turkey. Words are symbolic and perhaps the symbolism of a pig to the merchant and the turkey to the minister is just what he intended. Even today we refer to certain types of people as turkeys and pigs.

So we can see how he uses personification, alliteration, and symbolism in his poetry. The Owl and the Pussycat are the personification of humans. The Owl being the male, all knowing and wise; and the Pussycat being the female, cute and cuddly.

He describes their courtship and how the Owl plays his guitar and sings to his love, the Pussycat. It describes their economic situation having taken "plenty of money wrapped up in a five pound note." It describes romance with them dancing by the light of the moon. Other songs have since used similar phrases and words, such as "by the light of the silvery moon."

Although his poetry is considered nonsense verse, it is not all nonsense, since all people and especially children can easily relate to his delightful rhymes. This tale, The Owl and the Pussycat is a simple tale of love and marriage that all people can enjoy.

However, when considering it as nonsense, nonsense is good for the soul. I can see his type of poetry as the forerunner to the comic strip or cartoons.

Shortly before his death he was busy writing up a poem about the children of the Owl and the Pussycat. He wasn't quite finished with it so some of the words are missing.

Edward Lear was a gifted watercolorist, illustrator, and poet who suffered from bouts of depression and epilepsy. Respect for his work especially his watercolors has grown posthumously.

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