What would you do if all the world were paper? It’s fun to imagine, isn’t it? This rhyme is similar to ‘If All the World was Apple Pie.’ Both rhymes have a single stanza of four lines. In fact, the rhymes are the same except for one word. The apple pie is replaced by paper.
However, this rhyme has a different history. While the origins are not fully clear, we have some information about how and when the rhyme first came into the picture.
Scroll down to know more and download the printable lyrics.
Written Lyrics
If all the world were paper,
And all the sea were ink,
If all the trees were bread and cheese,
What would we have to drink?
Longer Version:
If all the world were paper,
And all the sea were ink?
And all the trees were bread and cheese,
What should we do for drink?
If all the world were sand O,
Oh then what should we lack O,
If as they say there were no clay
How should we take Tobacco?
etc.
Printable Lyrics
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Photo Lyrics
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Video Links
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Origins and History
If All the World Were Paper is said to be a parody of the Chaldee ode. It mimics the elaborate language used in the ancient Jewish and Medieval Adoration. The ode was sung in synagogues during the first day of Pentecost.
The rhyme became prominent during the reign of King Charles I. It was published in a collection titled Witt's Recreation. The book is a compilation of puzzles, sayings, poems, etc.
There is a country dance song with the same title and lyrics. John Playford first published it in English Dancing Master in 1651. The book was a dancing manual with music and instructions on English country dances.
The song required eight people to dance in a circle. The song was in the other editions of the Dancing Master series. The tenth edition was published in 1698. The last edition, published by John’s son Henry listed ‘If All the World Were Paper’.
Everal de Jersey composed a second strain for the song to the song in the mid-1960s. Pat Shuldham-Shay, musician and choreographer, requested this addition which is used even today. The modern version of If All the World Were Paper with two stanzas is used for country dancing.
FAQs
Well, there’s a painting titled ‘Jess, If All the World Were Paper and All the Water Sink’. The painting is oil on canvas by artist Emma Acker. It is housed at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco and was painted in 1962. Emma Acker is the Associate Curator of American Art at the same museum.
Yes, it is. Many nursery rhymes use similar imagery and phrasing to ask rhetorical questions. It’s a recurring theme in European literature and is also found in the Koran. If All the Sea Were Ink is an Irish version with the same theme.
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