Mr. Grumpledump's Song

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1974

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Download PDF

Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Background

Literary Context

The poetic works of Shel Silverstein are situated within a long literary history of nonsense and free verse poetry (see: Literary Devices “Form and Meter”). Nonsense verse, or nonsense poetry, as defined by the Encyclopedia Britannica, is “humorous or whimsical verse that differs from other comic verse in its resistance [to the] rational” (“Nonsense Verse,” The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica (2019)). Skilled authors of literary nonsense verse such as Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll use coined, meaningless words in a context that makes those same words sound purposeful within their poetry. Many traditional nonsense poems are also free verse: poems without any consistent patterns of rhyme, rhythm, or meter. The combination of made-up language and erratic formations of poetic verse create a playground for poets to stretch the creative limits of the genre, creating dynamic works of writing that engage audiences from the first silly turn of phrase to the last.

Most modern nonsense poetry, dating from the beginning of the 19th century, has been written for children. Shel Silverstein’s poem, “Mr. Grumpledump’s Song” illustrates the techniques of the nonsense tradition within its title. “Grumpledump” is a name of Silverstein’s own invention. The garble of consonants and vowels sound ridiculous when read aloud. This nonsensical surname works to characterize the speaker of the poem before readers even get to the first line, combining words like grumble (meaning to complain about something in a bad-tempered way) and phrases like down in the dumps (meaning to be unhappy or depressed) to introduce a poem riddled with complaints (Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary). Silverstein’s clever letter swapping and word combining found within the title of “Mr. Grumpledump’s Song” pay homage to the genre of nonsense verse that influenced much of his work as a children’s author.

Socio-Historical Context

Book banning is a form of censorship that occurs when a private individual, government body, or organization work to remove books from libraries, classroom curriculums, or bookstore shelves on the basis that their content is in some way profane or objectionable. Texts have been challenged, censored, and even burned for centuries on grounds of clashing moral codes. From Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales (1387) to Allen Ginsberg’s Howl (1955), poetry has historically been criticized for being too lewd, obscene, dark, or morose for audiences, and Shel Silverstein’s poetry is no exception.

Silverstein’s second collection of poetry, A Light in the Attic (1981), “spent 182 weeks on The New York Times general nonfiction bestseller list and spent fourteen weeks in the number one spot,” according to The Academy of American Poets (“Poetry’s Place in the History of Banned Books,” The Editors of The Academy of American Poets, The Academy of American Poets, Inc. (2018)). However, Silverstein’s A Light in the Attic (1981), along with his previously published collection of poems and drawings, Where the Sidewalk Ends (1974), were accused of being inappropriate for children. Challengers at various elementary schools across the United States stated that Silverstein’s poems encourage bad behavior and disobedience, while also glorifying Satan, death, and even cannibalism through his use of dark humor. A Light in the Attic (1981) was “so contested that it became number fifty-one on the list of 100 most frequently challenged books in the 1990s” (“Poetry’s Place in the History of Banned Books,” The Editors of The Academy of American Poets, The Academy of American Poets, Inc. (2018)).

Silverstein’s children’s literature centers young readers as autonomous human beings capable of thinking for themselves, which is a sentiment that is undoubtedly prone to ignite controversy. But ultimately, Silverstein’s work aims to shed light on the importance of childhood development, creativity, and independent thinking (see: Further Literary Resources “The Third Mr. Silverstein”).