Sunday, July 22, 2012

J is for Jumblies

This week's entry for AlphaBooks (& Illustration Friday) is not one character but many: the Jumblies, from Edward Lear's Nonsense Songs and Stories. Some might see the poem as pure silliness, but like much of Lear's work it carries undertones of deeper meaning-- I think it's a wonderful anthem for dreamers & the stubbornly impractical.

Green of head, blue of hand, & intrepid of spirit, these rare & dauntless creatures set sail in their sieve, ignoring a chorus of naysayers. They overcome difficult obstacles in inventive ways, find adventure & delight, & eventually return in triumph. And they do it all in such exquisitely playful & lyrical verse! 

Edward Lear himself loved to travel, despite daunting challenges. He suffered all his life from epilepsy & serious depression, among other ailments, yet he relished exploring other counties, routinely walking many miles of difficult terrain in search of scenes to paint. He was also an accomplished wildlife painter who specialized in birds (particularly parrots), & of course his poems & their accompanying illustrations have brought giddy delight to generations of children-- & to adults who haven't lost their taste for inspired nonsense.

Acrylic on text scanned from a Dover edition of The Complete Nonsense of Edward Lear, ~5" x 7.5"

Do you see the "J"s?

Edit: For those of you who aren't familiar with this poem, here it is! Bon voyage!


The Jumblies
I
They went to sea in a Sieve, they did,
  In a Sieve they went to sea:
In spite of all their friends could say,
On a winter's morn, on a stormy day,
  In a Sieve they went to sea!
And when the Sieve turned round and round,
And every one cried, 'You'll all be drowned!'
They called aloud, 'Our Sieve ain't big,
But we don't care a button! we don't care a fig!
  In a Sieve we'll go to sea!'
      Far and few, far and few,
            Are the lands where the Jumblies live;
      Their heads are green, and their hands are blue,
            And they went to sea in a Sieve.

 II
They sailed away in a Sieve, they did,
In a Sieve they sailed so fast,
  With only a beautiful pea-green veil
Tied with a riband by way of a sail,
  To a small tobacco-pipe mast;
And every one said, who saw them go,
'O won't they be soon upset, you know!
For the sky is dark, and the voyage is long,
And happen what may, it's extremely wrong
  In a Sieve to sail so fast!'
      Far and few, far and few,
            Are the lands where the Jumblies live;
      Their heads are green, and their hands are blue,
            And they went to sea in a Sieve.

 III
The water it soon came in, it did,
  The water it soon came in;
So to keep them dry, they wrapped their feet
In a pinky paper all folded neat,
  And they fastened it down with a pin.
And they passed the night in a crockery-jar,
And each of them said, 'How wise we are!
Though the sky be dark, and the voyage be long,
Yet we never can think we were rash or wrong,
  While round in our Sieve we spin!'
      Far and few, far and few,
            Are the lands where the Jumblies live;
      Their heads are green, and their hands are blue,
            And they went to sea in a Sieve.

 IV
And all night long they sailed away;
  And when the sun went down,
They whistled and warbled a moony song
To the echoing sound of a coppery gong,
  In the shade of the mountains brown.
'O Timballo! How happy we are,
When we live in a Sieve and a crockery-jar,
And all night long in the moonlight pale,
We sail away with a pea-green sail,
  In the shade of the mountains brown!'
      Far and few, far and few,
            Are the lands where the Jumblies live;
      Their heads are green, and their hands are blue,
            And they went to sea in a Sieve.

 V
They sailed to the Western Sea, they did,
  To a land all covered with trees,
And they bought an Owl, and a useful Cart,
And a pound of Rice, and a Cranberry Tart,
  And a hive of silvery Bees.
And they bought a Pig, and some green Jack-daws,
And a lovely Monkey with lollipop paws,
And forty bottles of Ring-Bo-Ree,
  And no end of Stilton Cheese.
      Far and few, far and few,
            Are the lands where the Jumblies live;
      Their heads are green, and their hands are blue,
            And they went to sea in a Sieve.

 VI
And in twenty years they all came back,
  In twenty years or more,
And every one said, 'How tall they've grown!
For they've been to the Lakes, and the Torrible Zone,
  And the hills of the Chankly Bore!'
And they drank their health, and gave them a feast
Of dumplings made of beautiful yeast;
And every one said, 'If we only live,
We too will go to sea in a Sieve,---
  To the hills of the Chankly Bore!'
      Far and few, far and few,
            Are the lands where the Jumblies live;
      Their heads are green, and their hands are blue,
            And they went to sea in a Sieve.


13 comments:

  1. The wonderful and thoughtful nonsense poems of Edward Lear often inspire me to paint. But I'd forgotten about the Jumblies. Thank you so much for this illustration.

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  2. Ooooohhh this is wonderful! I read the original book drawn by Edward Gorey. I always love that. How awesome would that be if you illustrated the entire book?!

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  3. This is so great. I love your interpretation.

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  4. Just excellent. I love Lear. I love your work :)

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  5. So glad I didn't arrive before you posted the poem because I LOVE IT. So silly and funny and happy and great. The illustration matches perfectly, so fun and happy and colorful and so CUTE. Aaaaah. :D

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  6. Leah, those characters would make a killer toy line. The colors are perfect, and I can see them all sitting in their little plastic boat, sold separately of course.

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  7. I love Edward Lear! Brilliant illustration, love the curviness of the sea :)

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  8. You are such an imaginative and inspiring artist! I count myself lucky to have found you, and look forward to seeing more of your works!

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  9. What a excellent poem! Thanks for the education on this poet too. I love love love the illustration!!!

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  10. I am resolutely impractical myself, so this lovely post chimed a melody I can dance to. Great stuff!

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  11. Love it!! The background especially is gorgeous - so tactile. Quirky little characters are great... :)

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  12. A magical scene!! Love the texture and their luminous eyes!!! Very interesting post!

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  13. Wow. I'm just bowled over by the beauty of the poem, and your equally charming illustration. I'd never read that piece before; I'm wondering if anyone has ever done a children's picture book version? If not, I think you should consider it!! The images...feet wrapped in folded paper, sleeping in a crockery jar, silvery bees...it could be amazing!!

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