The Monkey
The Monkey - context Summary
Published in 1974 Collection
A playful nonsense poem about a little monkey who eats green bananas, becomes ill, and tells the doctor that those are exactly the bananas he liked. The text substitutes numbers for some words, adding a childlike, game-like quality and unexpected humor. It appears in Shel Silverstein’s 1974 children’s collection Where the Sidewalk Ends, fitting the book’s mix of whimsy, absurdity, and gentle moral lessons.
Read Complete Analyses1 little monkey was goin' 2 the store when he saw a banana 3 he'd never climbed be4. By 5 o'clock that evenin' he was 6 with a stomach ache 'cause 7 green bananas was what that monkey 8. By 9 o'clock that evenin' that monkey was quite ill, so 10 we called the doctor who was 11 on the hill. The doctor said, 'You're almost dead. Don't eat green bananas no more.' The sick little monkey groaned and said, 'But that's what I 1-2 the 3-4.'
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