Robert Burns - An Author Portrait

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Robert Burns was born on 25 January 1759 in Alloway, South Ayrshire, Scotland. He was the eldest of seven children in the family. His parents Agnes Broun and William Burnes were hereditary farmers. His father was a man of admirable qualities: being a self-educated landsman, he taught his children writing, arithmetic, geography, history and religion. His family lived in the house he had built himself. The house in Alloway remains now as a museum.
     Because of a lot of manual work on his father’s farms and the lack of teachers in the countryside, Robert burns went to school episodically: at the age of six to nine to the private “adventure school” by John Murdoch, then to Dalrymple Parish School during one summer and, eventually, at the age of fourteen, he was sent to lodge with Murdoch for just three weeks.
     Robert Burns wrote his first verse by the age of fifteen, inspired by a coeval girl. During his life, Burns fell in love with many different ladies and addressed a lot of his poems to them. The women altogether brought him twelve children. The last son was born by his wife Jean Armour at the same day the poet died at the age of thirty seven.
     After the triumphant debut with the Kilmarnock Poems (1786), Burns wrote hundreds of brilliant poems and songs, mostly in English and a light Scottish dialect, though his best works were written in the Scottish language. Robert Burns not only created original poetry but also collected folk songs from all over Scotland to remake them. The poetry was published in volumes of dozens verses, as well his own as in common editions with contemporary authors.
     The most famous poems are: "Auld Lang Syne", "Tam O’ Shanter", "Address to a Haggis", "A Red, Red Rose", "A Man's A Man for A' That",  "To a Mouse"  and "Ae Fond Kiss". "Auld Lang Syne" is an adapted traditional folk song that is usually sung at New Year’s night. "Tam O’ Shanter" (1790) is a long poem about a man who drunk a little too much in a pub, so on the way home, riding a horse, he experiences imaginary hallucinations with zombies chasing him. Address to a Haggis is an ode to Scotland’s byproduct pudding that nowadays used to be served at Burns Suppers – the celebration of the poet’s birthday. "A Man's A Man for A' That" and  "To a Mouse"  are poems about the hard fate of the poor people. "Red, Red Rose" and "Ae Fond Kiss" are real love poems:
     “Ae fond kiss, and then we sever;
     Ae fareweel, alas, for ever!”
Robert Burns is considered a pro-Romantic poet. His literary style is imprinted by spontaneity, emotion, frankness and sincerity. The poet hated unfairness and brutality. Some of his lyrics are written with humor ("Tam o' Shanter"), some with satir ("Holy Willie's Prayer"). Burns’ poetry shows the author’s excellent knowledge of Classical, Biblical, and English literature.
     The themes of his poetry include republicanism, Scottish patriotism, inequality, poverty and sexuality.
     Robert Burns was a genius who had such a natural sense of community as few have had. In his poetry he summoned the essence of a nation. “We love Burns for the sound of his mind and the very lilt of his humanness.” says Andrew O'Hagen in his article "The people's poet" (The Guardian, 19/1-2008),” His affections are so well tuned as to the inner dignity of things that he can politicise the plight of a mouse caught in the rain. (…) Burns simply reaches out to touch its whiskers.” O'Hagen means that people get more humanized after reading Burns. He shows us how we may live imaginatively. That is the supreme service of art!
     Robert Burns is a classic, well-known all over the world. In Britain he influenced William Wordsworth, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Allan Ramsay, Robert Fergusson and also later the Scottish writer Hugh MacDiarmid. Undoubtedly, Burns’ poetry marked an imprint on and inspired hundreds of artists in many different countries. An example is the Nobel Prize-winning writer John Steinbeck who took the words “Of mice and men” from Burns’ "To a Mouse" as a title to his novel.

References:
1. Ae Fond Kiss (www)  < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ae_Fond_Kiss > (2013-03-12)
2. Haggis (www)  From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haggis>  (2013-03-12)   
3. O'Hagen, Andrew. The Guardian, Saturday 19 January 2008. The people's poet   (www) (2013-03-11)
4. Robert Burns’ famous works (www) (2013-03-12) 
5. Robert Burns: Literary Style (www) (2013-03-12)
6. Robert Burns (www) 7. Robert Burns (www)  (2013-03-12)
8. Tam o' Shanter (poem) (www)   <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tam_o(poem)> (2013-03-12)