Literature

Literature

A Summary and Analysis of the ‘Monday’s Child’ Poem

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) ‘Monday’s Child’ is the title sometimes given to a short children’s rhyme, which has been popular for several centuries. Lines such as ‘Monday’s child is fair of face’ and ‘Wednesday’s child is full of woe’ have become well-known; but what was the purpose of […]

Literature

The Curious Meaning of ‘Born in the USA’ by Bruce Springsteen

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) ‘Born in the USA’ is rock music’s ‘The Road Not Taken’: perhaps of all American songs, none has been more consistently misinterpreted than the title track from Bruce Springsteen’s bestselling 1984 album. And when we say ‘misinterpreted’, we don’t just mean people have missed […]