The Lobster Quadrille Lyrics
A whiting invites a snail to join the lobsters in a dance on the shore, and the snail politely says no. Lewis Carroll's three verses ask "will you, won't you" and answer "would not, could not", and they were first published in 1865.
The Lobster Quadrille
"Will you walk a little faster?" said a whiting to a snail,
"There's a porpoise close behind us, and he's treading on my tail.
See how eagerly the lobsters and the turtles all advance!
They are waiting on the shingle - will you come and join the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you join the dance?"
"You can really have no notion how delightful it will be
When they take us up and throw us, with the lobsters, out to sea!"
But the snail replied, "Too far, too far!" and gave a look askance -
Said he thanked the whiting kindly, but he would not join the dance.
Would not, could not, would not, could not, would not join the dance.
Would not, could not, would not, could not, could not join the dance.
"What matters it how far we go?" his scaly friend replied;
"There is another shore, you know, upon the other side.
The further off from England the nearer is to France -
Then turn not pale, beloved snail, but come and join the dance.
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance?
Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you join the dance?"
Printed from https://nurseryrhymes.co/the-lobster-quadrille/
- Type
- Poems for Children
- Written by
- Lewis Carroll
- First published
- 1865
- Tune
- Sung or read with a skipping rhythm, the invitation lines bright and the refusals firm
- Best for ages
- 5 to 10 years
What Does The Lobster Quadrille Mean?
The whiting, a small sea fish, hurries a slow snail along, because a porpoise is close behind and treading on the whiting's tail. The lobsters and the turtles are waiting on the shingle, the pebbly beach, for the dance to begin. The whiting says it will be delightful when the lobsters take them up and throw them out to sea. The snail looks askance, which means sideways with doubt, and says "Too far, too far". The whiting answers that the further from England, the nearer to France, and asks again.
The refrains are the heart of it. Each verse ends with two nearly identical lines: "Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, will you join the dance?" in the first and third, "Would not, could not, would not, could not, would not join the dance" in the second. The whiting asks, the snail refuses, the whiting asks again, and no one gives way.
A quadrille was a square dance for four couples, popular in the 1800s. The snail's polite no is the funny part.
History and Origin
Carroll wrote these lines for the 1865 Alice book. In chapter 10 the Mock Turtle and the Gryphon explain the Lobster Quadrille to Alice, and the Mock Turtle sings the song.
The verses are a parody of Mary Howitt's poem The Spider and the Fly, from 1829, whose smooth-talking spider asks the fly to "walk into my parlour". Carroll copied its opening and the idea of a flattering invitation, but gave it a gentler ending. The snail has the sense to say no, politely.
Learning Activities
- Two groups: one group says the invitation lines and the other answers the refusal lines, then they swap.
- Step and turn: in two lines facing each other, step forward on 'will you' and back on 'won't you', then turn on the spot.
- Slow versus quick: read the snail's lines slowly and the whiting's lines fast, to hear the difference.
- Draw the shore: draw the beach with the snail, the whiting, the lobsters and the turtles.