The Sloth

By Oliver Herford

Annotations by Karen Kilcup

Oliver Herford, “The Sloth.” Original print accompanying the poem.

The Sloth en-joys a life of Ease;[1]
He hangs in-vert-ed from the trees,
	And views life up-side down.
If you, my child, are noth-ing loath
To live in In-dol-ence and Sloth,
	Un-heed-ing the World’s frown,
You, too, un-vexed by Toil and Strife,
May take a hu-mor-ous view of life.

Herford, Oliver. “The Sloth.” A Child’s Primer of Natural History. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1899.

[1] Sloths are tree-dwelling animals from Central and South America. They are the slowest moving animals on Earth.

Contexts

When Herford published his book, natural history was an obsessive subject for children’s writers. Popular magazines like St. Nicholas led the way, creating study groups like the St. Nicholas League and advocacy for bird protection through its Bird Defenders. Exotic animals seemed to particularly fascinate American children. Contributors to St. Nick included prominent scientists like William T. Hornaday, who became the director of the New York Zoological Park (commonly known as the Bronx Zoo), and who founded the National Zoo in Washington, DC; famous naturalist John Burroughs; and Ernest Thompson Seton, founder of the Boy Scouts of America.

Herford’s poems, as well as their accompanying images, presented more fanciful accounts of animals but sometimes offered short natural history lessons. In this case, Herford emphasizes sloths’ upside-down lifestyle. All the poems in this book hyphenate some words, presumably to instruct children—and their parents—how to read.

Definitions from Oxford English Dictionary

inverted: reversed; contrary to expectation

indolence: love of ease; laziness

unvexed: not worried; undistressed

Resources for Further Study

“Sloth.” World Wildlife Federation.
“Two-toed Sloth, Choloepus hoffmanni, C. didactylus.” San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.
“Why are Sloths So Slow? And Other Sloth Facts.” Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute.

Contemporary Connections

“10 incredible facts about the sloth.” BBC Radio 4. Includes such facts as why we need sloths to have avocados.

“The Extreme Life of a Sloth.” Science Insider. This short video has fascinating facts about the animal, including why it travels from trees to the ground only once a week.