The Itsy Bitsy Spider: A Fan Theory
I just learned about water sprouts. These bad boys love to grow on fruit trees. They provide the perfect structural support for spiderwebs. Fruit farmers are all too familiar with them because they qualify as "deranged wood" and need to be regularly pruned. However, as we will explore later, they can also serve as powerful metaphors.
It reminded me of the familiar nursery rhythm "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" (based on the original 1910 folksong, "Spider Song"). I wondered if the song included the lyric water spout at some point in its evolution.
The first publication of the song involved a spider climbing and being washed from a web.
"Oh, the blooming, bloody spider went up the spider web,
The blooming, bloody rain came down and washed the spider out,
The blooming, bloody sun came out and dried up all the rain,
And the blooming, bloody spider came up the web again."
Originating in Southern California during the pre-dustbowl (Grapes of Wrath) era, some think it was an "allegory of the struggle of the lower classes" (source). Think about it. The lowest-paid workers were fruit farmers. Coincidentally, California's chief export was fruit farming at the time. Spiders were viewed as co-workers by those who worked and sang in the fields. They may have resonated with unsung, never-ending labor performed by the spiders to keep their fruit insect-free. What if the lyric evolved from web to water sprout, and we just don't have a record of it?!
However, as the song became more accepted by a national and global audience, non-farmers didn't know what water sprouts were so they naturally changed the lyric to a term they were familiar with: water spouts.
Today, children may never know the song's true origin or intended meaning. Regardless, I love the theme of resilience it conveys. I especially appreciate when storytellers continue to make it their own by changing the melody and adding a love story angle, as shown in this modern adaptation:
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