Robert Burns |
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Page 17
... months " [ he wrote in August 1787 ] , " have been my highest enjoyment . " How long Nellie continued to reign within his breast we have no information . His passion - such as it was - most likely died gradually out after it had " got ...
... months " [ he wrote in August 1787 ] , " have been my highest enjoyment . " How long Nellie continued to reign within his breast we have no information . His passion - such as it was - most likely died gradually out after it had " got ...
Page 19
... months or more so uneventful that he has nothing to record of them , except to mention that he was " perhaps the most ungainly , awkward being in the parish , " and that " no solitaire was less acquainted with the ways of the world ...
... months or more so uneventful that he has nothing to record of them , except to mention that he was " perhaps the most ungainly , awkward being in the parish , " and that " no solitaire was less acquainted with the ways of the world ...
Page 21
... month which is always a carnival in my bosom . A charming filette , who lived next door to the school , overset my trigonometry , and set me off in a tangent from the sphere of my studies . " Happily for his studies , and perhaps for ...
... month which is always a carnival in my bosom . A charming filette , who lived next door to the school , overset my trigonometry , and set me off in a tangent from the sphere of my studies . " Happily for his studies , and perhaps for ...
Page 35
... months at Irvine , being perhaps undecided as to what he should next turn his attention to . The additional expense of remaining where he was , was small , for his lodging cost him only a shilling a week , and he lived mainly on oatmeal ...
... months at Irvine , being perhaps undecided as to what he should next turn his attention to . The additional expense of remaining where he was , was small , for his lodging cost him only a shilling a week , and he lived mainly on oatmeal ...
Page 44
... months later he had , as we have seen , come to the conclusion that if the mean ambitions of his " little scene of things " were beneath his notice , its pleasures were by no means to be despised ; and he had begun even to comfort ...
... months later he had , as we have seen , come to the conclusion that if the mean ambitions of his " little scene of things " were beneath his notice , its pleasures were by no means to be despised ; and he had begun even to comfort ...
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Common terms and phrases
admirable Agnes Broun Alexander Cunningham appeared Auld Ayrshire ballads bard became become Burns's character charms circumstances Clarinda clever Common-Place Book convivial courtship Creech Crochallan death Dumfries Dunlop early ecclesiastical Edinburgh edition Ellisland emotions endeavour Epistle excise exciseman experiences expression farm farmer fashion father Fergusson friends friendship Gavin Hamilton genius Gilbert heart Highland Holy hope humour hypochondria influence inspired intercourse interest Irvine Jean Armour Kilmarnock Kilmarnock volume Kincardineshire Kirk kirk-session Kirkoswald least less letter mainly marriage Mary Campbell Mauchline ment merely mind Mossgiel never opinions parish partly passion peasant peculiar perhaps personality pieces pleasure poems poet poet's poetic poetry political poor girl pretty Ramsay recognised regard remarkable Riddell Robert Burns rustic satires says scenes Scotland Scottish sentiments Shanter shocking affair shortly social song spirit stanza success suppose Sylvander Tarbolton Thomson tion volume wife William Burnes worldly writes wrote young
Popular passages
Page 16 - I was not so presumptuous as to imagine that I could make verses like printed ones, composed by men who had Greek and Latin ; but my girl sung a song, which was said to be composed by a small country laird's son, on one of his father's maids, with whom he was in love! and I saw no reason why I might not rhyme as well as he ; for, excepting that he could smear sheep, and cast peats, his father living in the moor-lands, he had no more scholar-craft than myself. " Thus with me began love and poetry;...
Page 141 - Nor have I any cause to repent it. If I have not got polite tattle, modish manners, and fashionable dress, I am not sickened and disgusted with the multiform curse of boarding-school affectation : and I have got the handsomest figure, the sweetest temper, the soundest constitution, and the kindest heart in the county.
Page 41 - I should call it pleasure — but something which exalts me — something which enraptures me — than to walk in the sheltered side of a wood, or high plantation, in a cloudy winter-day, and hear the stormy wind howling among the trees and raving over the plain.
Page 9 - Hannibal gave my young ideas such a turn, that I used to strut in raptures up and down after the recruiting drum and bagpipe, and wish myself tall enough to be a soldier ; while the story of Wallace poured a Scottish prejudice into my veins, which will boil along there till the flood-gates of life shut in eternal rest.
Page 14 - ... giants, enchanted towers, dragons and other trumpery. This cultivated the latent seeds of poetry ; but had so strong an effect on my imagination, that to this hour, in my nocturnal rambles, I sometimes keep a sharp look-out in suspicious places; and though nobody can be more sceptical than I am in such matters, yet it often takes an effort of philosophy to shake off these idle terrors.
Page 111 - There was a strong expression of sense and shrewdness in all his lineaments; the eye alone, I think, indicated the poetical character and temperament. It was large and of a dark cast, which glowed, I say literally glowed, when he spoke with feeling or interest. I never saw such another eye in a human head, though I have seen the most distinguished men of my time.
Page 14 - In my infant and boyish days, too, I owed much to an old woman who resided in the family, remarkable for her ignorance, credulity, and superstition. She had, I suppose, the largest collection in the country of tales and songs concerning devils, ghosts, fairies, brownies, witches, warlocks, spunkies, kelpies, elf-candles, dead-lights, wraiths, apparitions, cantraips, giants, enchanted towers, dragons, and other trumpery.
Page 53 - I should have been a wise man ; but the first year, from unfortunately buying bad seed, the second, from a late harvest, we lost half our crops. This overset all my wisdom, and I returned, like the dog to his vomit, and the sow that was washed, to her wallowing...
Page 79 - Ayr, where we spent the day in taking a farewell before she should embark for the West Highlands, to arrange matters among her friends for our projected change of life.
Page 57 - This is a complaint I would gladly remedy, but, alas } I am far unequal to the task, both in native genius and education. Obscure I am, and obscure I must be, though no young poet, nor young soldier's heart, ever beat more fondly for fame than mine...