Rationale

Little Miss Muffet

In researching the meaning behind Little Miss Muffet, I found a lot of speculation surrounding the meaning of the nursery rhyme. Although some believe an entomologist named Thomas Muffet (1553-1604) wrote it for his stepdaughter.

 “Popular” interpretations of this nursery rhyme usually portray a little girl, alone, sitting on her ‘tuffet’ eating from a bowl of curds and whey, when she gets frightened by a spider and runs away. From this I took the underlying theme of the nursery rhyme to be something to do with fear. It made me question whether or not Miss Muffet had a right to be afraid of a little spider or if it was just an over-reaction. I took this underlying theme of fear and applied it to a modern context. I wanted to create a ‘modern’ world for Miss Muffet, and take the idea of the spider and apply it to day-to-day life. So I created an urban city for Miss Muffet, and imagined how she would react living in our environment. 

In my interpretation, Miss Muffet is afraid of shadows. We see the shadows distort and transform, as we presumably see the world through Miss Muffets eyes – her imagination running wild. Eventually she cannot handle the fear and she runs away. However after Miss Muffet leaves the scene, the shadow still lingers, making the viewer question whether or not Miss Muffet was really imagining things.

I chose this aesthetic because I wanted it to reach a younger audience. There is an underlying humorous tone to the storyline, which is emphasized by the bright solid colours of Miss Muffet, and the ‘cuteness’ of the dog. For the font, I chose a handwritten style, something a little more personal and fluid, but which could easily turn creepy when distorted. The soundtrack I chose complimented the emotions Miss Muffet was feeling and subsequently aided in telling her story, and setting the tone for the animation. In the beginning the music is almost cheerful, but it soon turns creepy and the pace quickens as she becomes more afraid.

I wanted to tell the nursery rhyme this way because I wanted to delve into the idea of the spider and what it meant. Was this spider dangerous? Did she really need to run away from it instead of dealing with it? Was she just over-reacting? I wanted to question the viewer’s opinion of Miss Muffet, but also make them question themselves, would they be afraid and react the same if they were in her shoes?




................................Miss Muffet Final Move - Link.......................