Intern Project Summer 2009

In the summer of 2009, the Information Technology Service (ITS) interns at Hamilton College were given a project as part of on-going training. The limitations of the project were fairly straightforward:

• Find a nursery rhyme
• Provide their own interpretation of the rhyme
• Work outside their comfort zone
• Use only original material or material licensed under Creative Commons

Each intern had to produce his/her own project, but were told from the beginning that they would have to present all the projects in a cohesive, collaborative manner.

They were further encouraged to do some background research into the historical origins and meanings of their rhyme to help with their interpretations. As a group, they began finding that many nursery rhymes had a multitude of historical readings and were not always as cheerful as people believe them to be. As a result, the interns all created pieces that are a far cry from the whimsical nature attributed to nursery rhymes.

The following pages are not what you may expect from nursery rhymes, but illustrate the many layers of meaning embedded in nursery rhymes and their continued relevance to our changing world.

Project Introductions

Mary Mary Quite Contrary
Originally written about Queen Mary I, many interpretations of this rhyme exist. My favorite is that Mary is a persecutor and murderer of Protestants.

Row, Row, Row Your Boat
When you think of rowboats and dreams, zombies rarely (if ever) enter the equation. But what if they did?

The Bay State Primer
In Adam's fall, we sinned all...?

 

 

Oranges and Lemons
Sometimes it's best not to go down that path. Things might not go as planned.

 

A Wise Old Owl
Did we learn anything from history's mistakes?