Collection Information: Rock-a-bye Baby was collected on April 28th, 2014 in Southfield, Michigan. It belongs to a sub-genre of nursery rhymes called lullabies.
Informant: The informant was Jean Lewis, a 78 year old African-American woman who was born in Galveston, Texas. She along with her two sisters and one brother spent the majority of her adolescence in Galveston. She met her husband in Galveston and moved to Michigan where she raised her two children.
Text:
Rock-a-bye baby
On the tree top,
When the wind blows,
The cradle will rock,
When the bough breaks,
The cradle will fall,
And down will come baby,
Cradle and all
Context: This lullaby is often performed by a motherly figure often a mother or grandmother. These lullabies are sung to infant children prior to bed, in order to assist them in their slumber. The informant recalls her mother and grandmother singing this lullaby to her. Further, she has furthered this folklore by singing it to her daughter and grandchildren.
Meaning and Interpretation: I interpreted this lullaby is one of the many slightly morbid but seemingly funny lullabies. This lullaby’s intention is to put children, but primarily infants to sleep. The informant corroborated this sentiment. Many of the statements in the lullaby make no sense to the audience but the soothing sounds of the lullaby are what ultimately put the child to sleep.
Collector’s Information: Malcolm Leverett, Dartmouth College ’14, Russian 13, Professor Mikhail Gronas, Spring 2014
