“A Red, Red Rose” by Robert Burns

A Narrative Report
Presented to
Ms. Rona A. Pangatungan

In Partial Fulfilment
Of the Requirements in
Lit_012: World Literature

By

Michelle Russ E. Esquierdo

(TTH 4:00-5:30)

2ND Semester, S.Y. 2019-2020

 A Red, Red Rose
By Robert Burns

O my Luve is like a red, red rose

That’s newly sprung in June;
O my Luve is like the melody
That’s sweetly played in tune.

So fair art thou, my bonnie lass,

So deep in luve am I;
And I will luve thee still, my dear,
Till a’ the seas gang dry.

Till a’ the seas gang dry, my dear,

And the rocks melt wi’ the sun;
I will luve thee still, my dear,
While the sands o’ life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only luve!

And fare thee weel awhile!
And I will come again, my luve,
Though it were ten thousand mile.
BACKGROUND OF THE AUTHOR

Robert Burns

 Born on January 25, 1759 at Alloway, Scotland

 Died on July 21, 1796 in Dumfries, Scotland at the age of 37
 He was the national poet of Scotland who wrote lyrics and songs in Scots
and in English.
 He was also famous for his amours and his rebellion against orthodox
religion and morality.
 His wife named is Jean Amour.

Notable Works:

“Tam o’Shanter”

“Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect”

“A Select Collection of Original Scotish Airs for the Voice”

“The Scots Musical Museum”

“The Death and Dying Words of Poor Maillie”

LIFE

He was the eldest son of tenant farmers William Burnes and Agnes Broun.
Robert’s parents encourage him to read books by important contemporary writers
as well as Shakespeare and Milton. He began his life as a poor tenant farmer but
was able to channel his intellectual energy into poetry and song to become one of
the most famous characters of Scotland’s cultural history. He is best known as a
pioneer of the Romantic movement for his lyrical poetry and his rewriting of
Scottish folk songs, many of which are still well known across the world today.
Since his death, many of the early founders of socialism and liberalism found
inspiration in his works.
INTERPRETATION

1st stanza:

The speaker or the author compares his beloved to a red rose praising her
beauty that her cheeks are like roses that blossom fresh in June and like a sweet
melody or like a new-strung instrument that’s newly put in tune.

2nd stanza:

The beloved is so beautiful that the speaker loves her with a deep and strong
passion. In fact, that his love will last until the oceans have become dry.

3rd stanza:

Even after the seas have evaporated and the earth has decayed, the speaker
will still love her. This love will endure until their own lives have ended and even
until all human life has ended.

4th stanza:

So here, the speaker is saying goodbye to the beloved just for awhile. The
speaker wishes her well during their temporary separation. The speaker reaffirms
his or her faithful love by promising to return even if the journey covers a verylong
distance and takes a very long time.
ELEMENTS

Sense of a Poem

 Imagery
Visual imagery: “O my luve is like a red, red rose”
“And the rocks melt wi’ the sun”
“While the sands o’ life shall run”

 Figurative Language
Simile: “O my luve is like a red, red rose”
“O my luve is like the melody”

Hyperbole: “Till a’ the seas gang dry”

“And the rocks melt wi’ the sun”

Sounds of a Poem

 Consonance: sound of /l/

“And fare thee weel awhile!

 Alliteration: sounds of /l/ and /r/

“O my Luve is like a red, red rose”

 Assonance: sounds of /i/

“I will luve thee still, my dear”

Structure of a Poem

 Stanza
Quatrain: the poem has a four-lined stanza borrowed from
Persian poetry.