The Fly Lyrics
The poem pictures the world through the eyes of a fly. A rosebud looks like a feather bed, a dewdrop like a looking-glass, a mustard seed like a coal of fire, a loaf of bread like a hill and a wasp like a leopard.
The Fly
How large unto the tiny fly
Must little things appear! -
A rosebud like a feather bed,
Its prickle like a spear;
A dewdrop like a looking-glass,
A hair like golden wire;
The smallest grain of mustard-seed
As fierce as coals of fire;
A loaf of bread, a lofty hill;
A wasp, a cruel leopard;
And specks of salt as bright to see
As lambkins to a shepherd.
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/the-fly/
- Type
- Poems for Children
- Written by
- Walter de la Mare
- Tune
- Wondering and slow, as if looking closely at each thing
- Best for ages
- 4 to 8 years
Hand Motions and Actions
| When you sing | Do this |
|---|---|
| A dewdrop like a looking-glass, | Hold up a pretend hand-mirror and look into it. |
| A loaf of bread, a lofty hill; | Draw a big mound in the air with both hands. |
What Does The Fly Mean?
The poem plays one trick over and over: it turns everyday small things into things that look huge to a tiny eye. A rosebud becomes a feather bed and its prickle a spear. A dewdrop is a looking-glass, an old word for a mirror, and a hair is a golden wire. The smallest grain of mustard seed seems as fierce as coals of fire, a loaf of bread is a lofty (very high) hill, and a wasp is a cruel leopard.
The last picture is the gentlest. Specks of salt look as bright to the fly as lambkins, little lambs, do to a shepherd who is watching his flock. Leopard and shepherd are made to rhyme in the way they are said in English. The fly's own feelings are never given, and that makes it a fine starting point for a talk about size and point of view.
History and Origin
This is a poem from Walter de la Mare's Songs of Childhood, which came out in 1902, published by Longmans, Green.
Learning Activities
- Look close: hold a magnifying glass over a flower, a crumb or a grain of salt and describe what looks different.
- Fly's eye view: get down on the floor and describe the room from there: how big is the table leg now?
- Big and small: draw an everyday small thing as huge, such as a pea as a giant green ball.
- Your comparison: ask the child what a crumb or a raindrop would look like to a tiny creature.