"Animal Crackers", is by an accomplished poet, Christopher Morley. He who reads the poem may take it for a nonchalant attempt at immortality by some middle-aged, middle-class Joe Blow without looking at the author. In actuality, it is a work by a serious poet that looks through a child's eyes at something simple and enhances the description through use of diction.
Animal crackers are both fun and functional. Being not only just food, but also entertainment. Children find it the ideal food, designed to justify "playing with your food". Morley's use of diction portrays the child's enjoyment of animal crackers. Substituting "treat" in for snack elevates the crackers to candy status. The crackers also bring a sense of homeliness when they are used in context with "cosiest" "aglow" "singing" and "jolly". Uses for the child also include a way to escape the "state" and "Nurse" of his/her high society upbringing by acting like a normal kid and just having "fun".
How to tell the child is from high society is easy through Morley's word choice. "Insist" implies the child doesn't have to ask for much, he/she just gets it. Mention of "Cinnamon toast" on demand is strange for the poorer classes. "Supper" "shall" and "dine" are also in the vernaculer of the rich. "To cook" and "to wait" imply that they have servants and cooks in the house, again showing the child's place in society.
It may be Morley trying to recall his childhood, trying to make up what he thinks a child sees, or even observing the actions of his own offspring in this poem. Nonetheless, whatever he does he effectively conveys a wealthy child's conception of animal crackers and how they bring joy to mealtime.
