Jack Sprat
Encyclopedia
"Jack Sprat" is an English language
nursery rhyme
. It has a Roud Folk Song Index
number of 19479.
from at least the mid-seventeenth century. It appeared in John Clarke's collection of sayings in 1639 in the form:
The saying entered the canon of English nursery rhymes when it was printed in Mother Goose's Melody around 1765, but it may have been adopted for use with children much earlier.
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
nursery rhyme
Nursery rhyme
The term nursery rhyme is used for "traditional" poems for young children in Britain and many other countries, but usage only dates from the 19th century and in North America the older ‘Mother Goose Rhymes’ is still often used.-Lullabies:...
. It has a Roud Folk Song Index
Roud Folk Song Index
The Roud Folk Song Index is a database of 300,000 references to over 21,600 songs that have been collected from oral tradition in the English language from all over the world...
number of 19479.
Lyrics
The most common modern version of the rhyme is:- Jack Sprat could eat no fat.
- His wife could eat no lean.
- And so between them both, you see,
- They licked the platter clean.
Origins
The name Jack Sprat was used of people of small stature in the sixteenth century. This rhyme was an English proverbProverb
A proverb is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim...
from at least the mid-seventeenth century. It appeared in John Clarke's collection of sayings in 1639 in the form:
- Jack will eat not fat, and Jull doth love no leane.
- Yet betwixt them both they lick the dishes cleane.
The saying entered the canon of English nursery rhymes when it was printed in Mother Goose's Melody around 1765, but it may have been adopted for use with children much earlier.
In popular culture
- Pittsburgh SteelersPittsburgh SteelersThe Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
iconic middle linebacker of the 1970s, Jack Lambert, had a nickname of "Jack Splat" that played on the nursery rhyme. He was noted for his excellent tackling skills as well as intense play, hence opposing ball carriers would go "splat" when tackled.
- In a scene deleted from Mel BrooksMel BrooksMel Brooks is an American film director, screenwriter, composer, lyricist, comedian, actor and producer. He is best known as a creator of broad film farces and comic parodies. He began his career as a stand-up comic and as a writer for the early TV variety show Your Show of Shows...
's film Young FrankensteinYoung FrankensteinYoung Frankenstein is a 1974 American comedy film directed by Mel Brooks and starring Gene Wilder as the title character, a descendant of the infamous Dr. Victor Frankenstein. The supporting cast includes Teri Garr, Cloris Leachman, Marty Feldman, Peter Boyle, Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars, Richard...
, the Monster encounters a cowardly English highwaymanHighwaymanA highwayman was a thief and brigand who preyed on travellers. This type of outlaw, usually, travelled and robbed by horse, as compared to a footpad who traveled and robbed on foot. Mounted robbers were widely considered to be socially superior to footpads...
somewhat inexplicably named Jack Sprat.
- In the comic bookComic bookA comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series Fables, Mrs. Sprat is briefly seen. She is, as the rhyme tells, very fatObesityObesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health, leading to reduced life expectancy and/or increased health problems...
indeed. Jack, seen standing behind his wife on page 13 of issue #30, is later mentioned as one of the victims of the Fable killer known as Ghost. She also appears in later story lines as a Nurse assisting Dr. Swineheart.
- In Jasper FfordeJasper FfordeJasper Fforde is a British novelist. Fforde's first novel, The Eyre Affair, was published in 2001. Fforde is mainly known for his Thursday Next novels, although he has written several books in the loosely connected Nursery Crime series and begun two more independent series: The Last Dragonslayer...
's novels The Big Over EasyThe Big Over EasyThe Big Over Easy is a novel written by Jasper Fforde and published in 2005. It features Detective Inspector Jack Spratt and his assistant, Sergeant Mary Mary....
and The Fourth BearThe Fourth BearThe Fourth Bear is a mystery/fantasy novel by Jasper Fforde published in July 2006. It is Jasper Fforde's sixth novel, and the second in the Nursery Crimes series...
, Jack SprattJack SprattJack Spratt is the protagonist in a series of alternate history science fiction fantasy novels by Jasper Fforde. He is the same character from the English nursery rhyme. As revealed in The Big Over Easy, for example, he hates eating fat, and was once married to a woman who ate nothing else .Spratt...
is the protagonist. Jack is a Detective Inspector in ReadingReading, BerkshireReading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
, investigating crimes committed by nursery rhyme and fairy tale characters. He also possesses traits of Jack the Giant KillerJack the Giant Killer"Jack the Giant Killer" is a British fairy tale about a plucky lad who slays a number of giants during King Arthur's reign. The tale is characterized by violence, gore, and blood-letting. Giants are prominent in Cornish folklore and Welsh Bardic lore, but the source of "Jack the Giant Killer" is...
and Jack from "Jack and the BeanstalkJack and the BeanstalkJack and the Beanstalk is a folktale said by English historian Francis Palgrave to be an oral legend that arrived in England with the Vikings. The tale is closely associated with the tale of Jack the Giant-killer. It is known under a number of versions...
". True to the rhyme, Spratt hates fat, often going to great lengths to trim it from his food. Spratt has remarried, following the death of the wife mentioned in the rhyme; Jack cites it as a result of eating too much fat .
- In G. Paul Lucas's artworks, mixed-media photomontage is used to offer a contemporary interpretation of Jack Sprat and his rotund wife. Inspired from early childhood by this Mother Goose rhyme, Lucas creates a world in which the slovenly, beer-drinking Jack is "taken care of" in more ways than one by his dissatisfied, hot-tempered wife.
- Episodes of both television series Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Ned's Declassified School Survival GuideNed's Declassified School Survival GuideNed's Declassified School Survival Guide, commonly called Ned's Declassified for short, is an American live-action situation comedy on Nickelodeon that debuted in the channel's Sunday night TEENick scheduling block on September 12, 2004. The series' actual pilot episode aired on September 7, 2003...
use the name Jack Sprat. Sabrina uses it as a fake name when she drinks "Boy Brew" to become a guy to listen in on conversations Harvey has with his friends. The new kid janitor who tries to take over Gordy's job is named Jack Sprat in the episode "New Kid".
- In a segment of "Vital Information" on an episode of All ThatAll ThatAll That is an American live-action, sketch comedy-variety show that aired on the Nickelodeon cable television network featuring short comedic sketches and weekly musical guests. The theme song for All That was performed by TLC...
, one of the bits of information was, "Contrary to popular belief, Jack Sprat can eat fat. You just gotta hold Jack down and shove that fat down his throat!"