Literary nonsense from a combination of both sources. Though not the first to write this hybrid kind of nonsense, Edward Lear developed and popularized it in his many limericks (starting with "A Book of Nonsense", 1846) and other famous texts such as "The Owl and the Pussycat", "The Dong with a Luminous Nose," "" and "The Story of the Four Little Children Who Went Around the World". Lewis Carroll continued this trend, making literary nonsense a worldwide phenomenon with "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" (1865) and "Through the Looking-Glass" (1871). Carroll's poem "Jabberwocky", which appears in the latter book, is often considered quintessential
Re Lear his life. In 1896, he offered his "Lear" material to Pietro Mascagni who asked "Maestro, why didn't you put it into music?". According to Mascagni, "softly and slowly he replied 'the scene in which King Lear finds himself on the heath scared me'". Notes Sources Re Lear The "Re Lear" project is widely considered illustrative of Verdi's complex and enduring fascination with Shakespeare. Verdi commissioned the libretto first from Salvadore Cammarano, who died in June 1852 before he could complete it. Then, three years later, while working with Antonio Somma on what was eventually to become "Un ballo in maschera",