The Meaning Behind the Greedy Nursery Rhyme “Little Jack Horner”

With most nursery rhymes, the meaning is pretty evident. Or, if it’s not, at least the story is interesting. Jack and Jill went up the hill and came tumbling down. Little Bo Peep lost her sheep. We get it. But with the classic nursery rhyme “Little Jack Horner” we’re left to think only one thing: who wrote this crazy thing? And how has it lasted through the ages?

Let’s dive into all that along with the nursery rhyme’s meaning below.

Greed

At first glance, the nursery rhyme seems to depict a nonsensical, almost Twin Peaks-like scene. Surreal but familiar. Childlike but demonic. But when you begin to parse the verse, a meaning shows itself.

Little Jack Horner / Sat in the corner / Eating his Christmas pie / He put in his thumb / And pulled out a plum / And said, “What a good boy am I!”

Again, while it seems surreal and clownish at first, the meaning takes shape. This little boy, Jack Horner, is in the corner of his house with his own Christmas pie. Not a regular everyday pie, but one special for Christmas. And he has it all to himself.

Being that he’s “little” it’s unlikely he took the time to make the pie, or even knows how. Instead, he benefits merely by proximity. While this rhyme’s publication dates back to the mid-1700s, it’s likely some form of it comes from before that time. At a time when Christmas pies were all the rage.

Then what does Little Jack do? He puts his grubby little hand into the pie and pulls out a juicy, likely marinated, sweet, and tangy plum. Does he say thank you to the provider of the pie or the plum? Nope. Instead, he praises himself. As if he climbed the tree to pluck the plum, himself.

History

Strangely, much has been written about this little verse throughout history. The poem has been rewritten—to eschew its greedy tone—and its title and title character has been associated with other poems erroneously. But let’s trim the fat here.

First found in Mother Gooese’s melody, or, Sonnets for the Cradle, which dates back to at least 1791 and perhaps as far back as 1765, a reference to the verse came even earlier in 1725 in a satire by English writer Henry Carey, called “Namby Pamby.”

As with many nursery rhymes—from Jack and Jill to Little Bo Peep—people have attempted to ascribe current meanings to the lyrics. While this is often dubious, for Little Jack Horner, people have pointed to the story of Thomas Horner, who allegedly stole a deed to a manor. Though, evidence shows that he never did.

Instead, the rhyme was likely born from watching greedy children who don’t know where food comes from look pleased with discovering what was inside their confection. Really, what you hope, is that an adult comes by to teach them at the moment. But while that may be so, there is no historical event to point to here.

Revised Less Greedy Verse

In the 1820s in The Renowned History of Little Jack Horner, the poem is revised to offer children a moral view of the world.

Now let every good boy,
With a sweetmeat or toy,
Not slyly sneak into a corner,
But to playmates repair
And give them a share.

One wonders why such a poem was needed, but perhaps at that time, the name Jack Horner was so well known and so irresistible for a quick bit of verse, that it just came to be through some moralistic writer. Since then, Jack has appeared in many jokes, satires, novels, and more. He remains a popular character. For example, he’s in the 2022 animated movie, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, an owner of a pie business now named “Big Jack Horner” and it’s hilarious.

From “Nursery Rhymes – Ridicula Rediviva” illustrated by J.E. Rogers, with chromolith printing by R. Clay Sons & Taylor and published in London in 1876 by Macmillan and Co. / Gettyimages.com