Spoonerisms in a book of children's poems

[Joel S. Berson]

Thanks for the pointer to "Runny Babbit".  It's hilarious, and fun to
read aloud.  At times, a switched word even makes some sense in
context.  Runny Babbit didn't want "kugs and hisses" from Polly
Dorkupine.  Runny's family included "A dummy and a mad."  When he got
dirty making mud pies, "His wamma mashed him with the clothes and
hung him out to dry." And:

Runny Bakes a Tath.

Runny had to bake a tath
Before they'd sive him gupper.
He got so tungry in the hub,
He ate the rat of mubber.
He chewed his dubber rucky up,
He gulped boap subbles, too.
But what upset his mamma most,
Was shrinking the dampoo.

Joel

At 4/23/2013 03:55 PM, Cohen, Gerald Leonard wrote:
>For those interested in Spoonerisms, a student in my Etymology class
>sent me the following message:
>
>
>
>'...A while ago, we discussed spoonerisms in class. It just dawned
>on me that I have a book called, "The Runny Babbit" written by Shel
>Silverstein. It is made up of children's poems, and he switches the
>first letters of the words throughout the entire book.
>
>
>
>For example, this poem is called "Runny's Jig Bump":
>
>"Runny be quimble,
>
>Runny be nick,
>
>Runny cump over the jandlestick.
>
>But now--what smells like furning bluff?
>
>Guess he didn't hump jigh enough."
>
>
>
>I was just wondering if these poems would fall under the category of
>spoonerisms?'
>
>
>
>Gerald Cohen
>
>P.S. The answer to the above question is yes (with respect to the
>transposed items).
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org