Post 14: Robert Burns Supper and Extra Credit
Epistle to a Young Friend. May, 1786
I lang hae thought, my youthfu’ friend,
A Something to have sent you, Tho’ it should serve nae other end Than just a kind memento; But how the subject theme may gang, Let time and chance determine; Perhaps it may turn out a Sang; Perhaps, turn out a Sermon. Ye’ll try the world soon my lad, And Andrew dear believe me, Ye’ll find mankind an unco squad, And muckle they may grieve ye; For care and trouble set your thought, Ev’n when your end’s attained; And a’ your views may come to nought, Where ev’ry nerve is strained. I’ll no say, men are villains a’; The real, harden’d wicked, Wha hae nae check but human law, Are to a few restricked: But Och, mankind are unco weak, An’ little to be trusted; If Self the wavering balance shake, It’s rarely right adjusted Yet they wha fa’ in Fortune’s strife, Their fate we should na censure, For still th’ important end of life, They equally may answer: A man may hae an honest heart, Tho’ Poortith hourly stare him; A man may tak a neebor’s part, Yet hae nae cash to spare him. Ay free, aff han’, your story tell, When wi’ a bosom crony; But still keep something to yoursel Ye scarcely tell to ony. Conceal yoursel as weel’s ye can Frae crtitical dissection; But keek thro’ ev’ry other man, Wi’ sharpen’d, sly inspection. The sacred lowe o’ weel plac’d love, Luxuriantly indulge it; But never tepmt th’ illicit rove, Tho’ naething should divulge it: I wave the quantum o’ the sin; The hazard of concealing; But Och! it hardens a’ within, And petrifies the feeling! To catch Dame Fortune’s golden smile, Assiduous wait upon her; And gather gear by ev’ry wile, That justify’d by Honor: Not for to hide it in a hedge, Not for a train-attendant; But for the glorious privilege Of being independent. The fear o’ Hell’s a hangman’s whip, To haud the wretch in order; But where ye feel your Honour grip, Let that ay be your border: It’s slightest touches, instant pause— Debar a’ side-pretences; And resolutely keep its laws, Uncaring consequences. The great Creator to revere, Must sure become the Creature; But still the preaching cant forbear: And ev’n the rigid feature: Yet ne’er with Wits prophane to range, Be complaisance extended; An atheist-laugh’s a poor exchange For Deity offended! When ranting round in Pleasure’s ring, Religion may be blinded; Or if she gie a random-fling, It may be little minded; But when on Life we’re tempest-driven, A Conscience but a canker— A correspondence fix’d wi’ Heav’n, Is sure a noble anchor! Adieu, dear, amiable Youth! Your heart can ne’er be wanting! May Prudence, Fortitude and Truth Erect your brow undaunting! In ploughman phrase ‘God send you speed,’ Still daily to grow wiser; And may ye better reck the rede, Than ever did th’ Adviser! |
I long have thought, my youthful friend,
Of something to have sent you,
Though it should serve no other end
Than just a kind memento:
But how the subject theme may go,
Let time and chance determine:
Perhaps it may turn out a song;
Perhaps, turn out a sermon.
You will try the world soon, my lad;
And, Andrew dear, believe me,
You will find mankind an strange squad,
And much they may grieve you:
For care and trouble set your thought,
Even when your end is attained;
And all your views may come to nothing,
Where every nerve is strained.
I will not say, men are villains all:
The real, hardened wicked,
Who have no check but human law,
Are to a few restricted;
But, oh! Mankind are mighty weak
And little to be trusted;
If Self the wavering balance shake,
It is rarely right adjusted!
Yet they who fall in Fortune's strife,
Their fate we should not censure;
For still, the important end of life
They equally may answer:
A man may have an honest heart,
Though poverty hourly stare him;
A man may take a neighbours part,
Yet have no cash to spare him.
Always free, off hand, your story tell,
When with a bosom crony;
But still keep something to yourself
You scarcely tell to anybody:
Conceal yourself as well as you can
From critical dissection:
But pry through every other man
With sharpened, sly inspection.
The sacred flame of well placed love,
Luxuriantly indulge it;
But never attempt the illicit rove,
Though nothing should divulge it:
I waive the quantum of the sin,
The hazard of concealing;
But, oh! it hardens all within,
And petrifies the feeling!
To catch Dame Fortune's golden smile,
Assiduously wait upon her;
And gather wealth by every wile
That is justified by honour:
Not for to hide it in a hedge,
Not for a train-attendant;
But for the glorious privilege
Of being independent.
The fear of Hell is a hangman's whip
To hold the wretch in order;
But where you feel your honour grip,
Let that always be your border:
Its slightest touch, instantly pause -
Debar all side pretences;
And resolutely keep its laws,
Uncaring (of) consequences.
The great Creator to revere
Must sure become the creature;
But still the preaching can not forbear,
And even the rigid feature:
Yet never with wits profane to range
Be complaisance extended;
An atheist's laugh is a poor exchange
For Deity offended!
When frolicking round in Pleasure's ring,
Religion may be blinded;
Or if she gives a random sting,
It may be little minded;
But when on Life we are tempest driven -
A conscience but a canker -
A correspondence fixed with Heaven
Is sure a noble anchor!
Adieu, dear, amiable youth!
Your heart can never be wanting!
May prudence, fortitude, and truth,
Erect your brow undaunting!
In ploughman phrase, 'God send you speed,'
Still daily to grow wiser;
And may you better heed the counsel,
Than ever did the adviser!
|
Three-Sentence Thesis:
In Robert Burns’ poem, Epistle to a Young Friend, the speaker presents a collection of advices to the subject of the poem, and through him, the reader. The speaker offers his views on love, religion, and mankind as a whole, while also conceding that temptation will undoubtedly haunt the subject, and nobody (including Burns himself) is immune to succumbing to it. Framed as a letter from an older man to a younger one, Burns wields a friendly yet serious tone and a consistent rhyming pattern to warn against the common follies of man, while also conceding that sometimes we will stumble.
Compare and Contrast:
Epistle to a Young Friend by Robert Burns vs The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Both Robert Burns’ Epistle to a Young Friend features an older man giving advice to a younger man over life. Similarly, Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray features both Basil Hallward and Lord Henry as older men who are trying to influence the younger Dorian Gray with their own life advice. This operates as one of the core conflicts of the book, as Basil and Henry have opposing views on life. Henry is an unabashed hedonist, telling Dorian Gray that “[t]he only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it” (Wilde 19-20). In contrast, Basil recognizes Henry’s influence as dangerous and immoral, as Basil constantly warns Dorian Gray that he “mustn’t believe a word that [Henry] says”. (Wilde 21) While Basil acts mostly as a passive resistance towards Henry, only espousing his own views to Dorian in response to Harry’s attempts to influence Dorian, Henry is proactive in his attempts to influence Dorian. For example, in Chapter 8 after learning that Sibyl Vane, who was to be wedded to Dorian, had committed suicide in response to Dorian suddenly harshly rejecting her, Henry visits Dorian and actively tries to convince Dorian that Sibyl’s suicide was, in fact, a good thing and that Dorian should feel no remorse for his actions. In addition, while both Basil and Henry have explicitly stated motives for trying to influence Dorian: Basil wants to preserve Dorian’s previous innocence while Henry tries to influence Dorian out of a selfish desire to study Dorian and to hear his “own intellectual views echoed back” (Wilde 34). In contrast to those more selfishly minded motives, the speaker in Burns’ Epistle to a Young Friend seems to truly have the poem’s recipient’s best interests at heart, wishing the recipient of the poem that they “still daily grow wiser” (Burns 88) and wishing them to “better heed the counsel/Than ever did the advisor” (Burns 88/89).
Individual Analysis:
I will not say, men are villains all:
The real, hardened wicked,
Who have no check but human law,
Are to a few restricted;
But, oh! Mankind are mighty weak
And little to be trusted;
If Self the wavering balance shake,
It is rarely right adjusted!
Yet they who fall in Fortune's strife,
Their fate we should not censure;
For still, the important end of life
They equally may answer:
A man may have an honest heart,
Though poverty hourly stare him;
A man may take a neighbours part,
Yet have no cash to spare him.
The speaker shifts from telling the young man what will become of his life as he does in the first paragraph. The previous stanza served primarily to state what the speaker believed would become of the young friends’ life, and what he would experience throughout his life. This shifts into a concession in the third and fourth stanzas. The speaker opens the third stanza with a concession that “I will not say, men are villains all” (Burns). This serves to alleviate the depressing mood created with warnings in the first two stanzas. This shift more clearly shows the speaker’s attitude of distrust toward his fellow mankind. This reveals that his warnings and predictions of unhappiness in his future come out a desire to protect his younger friend from the realities of life. This epistle conveys the meaning of an older man giving advice to a younger man who is coming of age. As this younger man begins to explore the world, the speaker seeks to warn him against the hardships he may face. Beyond warning the young man of the distrustfulness of mankind, the speaker shifts to imploring the young man to open his heart to the less fortunate. The speaker impresses upon the young man an idea of equality in “the important end of life”(Burns) between those who “fall in Fortune’s strife”(Burns) and those who are luckier in life. This claim appeals to pathos of the young man as the speaker seeks to influence him to become a better man than those around him and assist those around him.
This desire to influence is similar to that of Henry in The Picture of Dorian Gray, except for the end result. In the poem, the speaker seeks to positively influence the boy and help to shape him into a kind and good person. In comparison, Henry seeks to influence Dorian to heed to his pleasures and dismiss all feelings of sin or guilt. While Henry is not attempting to influence Dorian into becoming a ‘bad person’, he wants to open Dorian’s mind to his perceived levels of enlightenment, conveying his disbelief in morals or sin. In the poem, the speaker bemoans the loss of a moral compass as claims “If Self the wavering balance shake, It is rarely right adjusted” (Burns). The speaker worries for someone’s loss of morality as he believes they will not be able to right their moral compass. This desire for a moral compass is a direct opposite to Henry’s amoral influence of Dorian. Henry’s seeks to rid Dorian of his morality, railing against the confines of guilt or sin, and declaring them to be social constructs. In this, the main difference between the two speakers is seen. While both Henry and the poem’s speaker agree that one’s moral compass is easily displaced and changed, Henry argues this is for the best as it frees one from unpleasantries of guilt or shame, while the poem’s speaker sees this as mankind’s greatest weakness.
The speaker shifts from telling the young man what will become of his life as he does in the first paragraph. The previous stanza served primarily to state what the speaker believed would become of the young friends’ life, and what he would experience throughout his life. This shifts into a concession in the third and fourth stanzas. The speaker opens the third stanza with a concession that “I will not say, men are villains all” (Burns). This serves to alleviate the depressing mood created with warnings in the first two stanzas. This shift more clearly shows the speaker’s attitude of distrust toward his fellow mankind. This reveals that his warnings and predictions of unhappiness in his future come out a desire to protect his younger friend from the realities of life. This epistle conveys the meaning of an older man giving advice to a younger man who is coming of age. As this younger man begins to explore the world, the speaker seeks to warn him against the hardships he may face. Beyond warning the young man of the distrustfulness of mankind, the speaker shifts to imploring the young man to open his heart to the less fortunate. The speaker impresses upon the young man an idea of equality in “the important end of life”(Burns) between those who “fall in Fortune’s strife”(Burns) and those who are luckier in life. This claim appeals to pathos of the young man as the speaker seeks to influence him to become a better man than those around him and assist those around him.
This desire to influence is similar to that of Henry in The Picture of Dorian Gray, except for the end result. In the poem, the speaker seeks to positively influence the boy and help to shape him into a kind and good person. In comparison, Henry seeks to influence Dorian to heed to his pleasures and dismiss all feelings of sin or guilt. While Henry is not attempting to influence Dorian into becoming a ‘bad person’, he wants to open Dorian’s mind to his perceived levels of enlightenment, conveying his disbelief in morals or sin. In the poem, the speaker bemoans the loss of a moral compass as claims “If Self the wavering balance shake, It is rarely right adjusted” (Burns). The speaker worries for someone’s loss of morality as he believes they will not be able to right their moral compass. This desire for a moral compass is a direct opposite to Henry’s amoral influence of Dorian. Henry’s seeks to rid Dorian of his morality, railing against the confines of guilt or sin, and declaring them to be social constructs. In this, the main difference between the two speakers is seen. While both Henry and the poem’s speaker agree that one’s moral compass is easily displaced and changed, Henry argues this is for the best as it frees one from unpleasantries of guilt or shame, while the poem’s speaker sees this as mankind’s greatest weakness.
Extra Credit:
For the meal part of the celebration, I brought in grape juice. While this is not a traditional Scottish drink, it is a kid-friendly drink, great for school parties and Burns celebrations.
To celebrate Robert Burns' poetry, I prepared his poem 'On Marriage' to present at the celebration. This poem is traditionally sung by ladies at the celebrations as a response to the men's initial call to the lassies. In the traditional call to the lassies, the men will harp on their wives as weighing them down. In this response, I conveyed the tone of the ladies as exasperated with but still loving of their husbands.
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