A wee bit o' Burns

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Penny Tray
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Penny Tray »

Your warlike Kings and Heroes bold,
Great Captains and Commanders;
Your mighty Caesars fam’d and old,
And Conquering Alexanders;
In fields they fought and laurels bought
And bulwarks strong did batter,
But still they grac’d our noble list
And ranked Fornicator!!!

*THE FORNICATOR
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Penny Tray
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Penny Tray »

But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane,
In proving foresight may be vain:
The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men
Gang aft agley,
An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,
For promis’d joy!

*TO A MOUSE
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Meg
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Meg »

Penny Tray wrote: Mon Feb 19, 2018 9:09 am
The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men


I read an article (in the Evening Standard) twenty odd years ago that stated this was one of the most (mis)quoted sayings in the English language - “plans” being substituted for “schemes”.
5siamese7
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by 5siamese7 »

The poem is written in Scottish dialect so who careS about the English language. Incidently he kent nothing about mice because they do think ahead. If they didn't they wouldn't store food for future hard times.
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Meg
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Meg »

5siamese7 wrote: Mon Feb 19, 2018 5:47 pm The poem is written in Scottish dialect so who careS about the English language.
It was actually the English speaking world - and I think Burns would have cared that his words had come into common use world wide.
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Penny Tray »

The charms o’ the min’, the langer they shine
The mair admiration they draw, man;
While peaches and cherries, and roses and lilies,
They fade and they wither awa, man.

*THE RONALDS OF THE BENNALS
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Penny Tray »

O ye, wha are sae guid yoursel’,
Sae pious and sae holy,
Ye’ve nought to do but mark and tell
Your neebour’s fauts and folly!

*ADDRESS TO THE UNCO GUID
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John Donnelly
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by John Donnelly »

Hi PT,

I think this is Burns' number two masterpiece; the knife-edge portrayal of the person and the humour surrounding it. This and Holy Willie's Prayer are without compare.

JD.
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by 5siamese7 »

Meg wrote: Tue Feb 20, 2018 7:10 am
5siamese7 wrote: Mon Feb 19, 2018 5:47 pm The poem is written in Scottish dialect so who careS about the English language.
It was actually the English speaking world - and I think Burns would have cared that his words had come into common use world wide.
Perhaps but as you know his main concern was making some money. When in Edinburgh he tried to ingratiate himself with the gentry who found him highly amusing and referred to him as the "Plooman poet". However the novelty of his amusing slang soon wore off. His great legacy of course is the wonderful beauty and humanity that is to be found in his writings. Also have you noticed that a lot of folk in Ayrshire finish a sentence with and that?
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Penny Tray »

There’s few sae bonie, nane sae guid
In a’ King George’ dominion:
If ye should doubt the truth o’ this,
It’s Bessy’s ain opinion!

*THE TARBOLTON LASSES
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Penny Tray »

O happy is the man, an’ blest!
Nae wonder that it pride him!
Whase ain dear lass, that he likes best,
Comes clinkin down beside him!
Wi’ arm repos’d on the chair back,
He sweetly does compose him;
Which, by degrees, slips round her neck,
An’s loof upon her bosom,
Unkend that day.

*THE HOLY FAIR
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Re: A wee bit o' Burns

Post by Penny Tray »

An honest man here lies at rest,
As e’er God with his image blest:
The friend of man, the friend of truth,
The friend of age, a guide of youth:
Few hearts like his – with virtue warm’d
Few heads with knowledge so inform’d:
If there’s another world, he lives in bliss;
If there is none, he made the best of this.

*EPITAPH ON MY OWN FRIEND AND MY FATHER’S FRIEND, WM. MUIR IN TARBOLTON MILL
Nothing is ever really lost to us as long as we remember it.
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