“To A Mouse”
By: Robert
Burns
Robert Burns was born in January 1759 and died in 1796.
Burns often wrote poetry, however he did not make his living
through writing. He supported himself by farming and he
gained most of his fame after his death.
For the poem, “ To A Mouse”, the inspiration came from
when he was working in the field and he disturbed a mouse’s
nest.
"Robert Burns Biography." Robert Burns Biography. Web. 07 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.britainexpress.com/History/bio/burns.htm>.
“To A Mouse”
Wee, sleekit, cowrin, tim'rous beastie,
O, what a panic's in thy breastie!
Thou need na start awa sae hasty
Wi bickering brattle!
I wad be laith to rin an' chase thee,
Wi' murdering pattle.
Thou saw the fields laid bare an' waste,
An' weary winter comin fast,
An' cozie here, beneath the blast,
Thou thought to dwell,
Till crash! the cruel coulter past
Out thro' thy cell.
I'm truly sorry man's dominion
Has broken Nature's social union,
An' justifies that ill opinion
Which makes thee startle
At me, thy poor, earth born companion
An' fellow mortal!
That wee bit heap o' leaves an' stibble,
Has cost thee monie a weary nibble!
Now thou's turned out, for a' thy trouble,
But house or hald,
To thole the winter's sleety dribble,
An' cranreuch cauld.
I doubt na, whyles, but thou may thieve;
What then? poor beastie, thou maun live!
A daimen icker in a thrave
'S a sma' request;
I'll get a blessin wi' the lave,
An' never miss't.
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!
Thy wee-bit housie, too, in ruin!
It's silly wa's the win's are strewin!
An' naething, now, to big a new ane,
O' foggage green!
An' bleak December's win's ensuin,
Baith snell an' keen!
Still thou are blest, compared wi' me!
The present only toucheth thee:
But och! I backward cast my e'e,
On prospects drear!
An' forward, tho' I canna see,
I guess an' fear!
"To a Mouse." The World Burns Club. 2004. Web. 07 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.worldburnsclub.com/poems/translations/554.htm>.
“To A Mouse” Paraphrase
Small, sleek, cowering, timorous beast,
O, what a panic is in your breast!
You need not start away so hasty
With hurrying scamper!
I would be loath to run and chase you,
With murdering plough-staff.
You saw the fields laid bare and wasted,
And weary winter coming fast,
And cozy here, beneath the blast,
You thought to dwell,
Till crash! the cruel plough past
Out through your cell.
I'm truly sorry man's dominion
Has broken Nature's social union,
And justifies that ill opinion
Which makes thee startle
At me, thy poor, earth born companion
And fellow mortal!
That small bit heap of leaves and stubble,
Has cost you many a weary nibble!
Now you are turned out, for all your trouble,
Without house or holding,
To endure the winter's sleety dribble,
And hoar-frost cold.
I doubt not, sometimes, but you may steal;
What then? Poor beast, you must live!
An odd ear in twenty-four sheaves
Is a small request;
I will get a blessing with what is left,
And never miss it.
But Mouse, you are not alone,
In proving foresight may be vain:
The best laid schemes of mice and men
Go often askew,
And leaves us nothing but grief and pain,
For promised joy!
Your small house, too, in ruin!
It's feeble walls the winds are scattering!
And nothing now, to build a new one,
Of coarse grass green!
And bleak December's winds coming,
Both bitter and keen!
Still you are blest, compared with me!
The present only touches you:
But oh! I backward cast my eye,
On prospects dreary!
And forward, though I cannot see,
I guess and fear!
"To a Mouse." The World Burns Club. 2004. Web. 07 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.worldburnsclub.com/poems/translations/554.htm>.
“To A Mouse”
The small smooth coated shy timid creature, do not be afraid, there is no need to scamper and
scuttle away making such a noise of fear. I am very sorry that because we as men have to
plough the land and terrorize you. I can understand why you being so small an animal is
scared. But mouse I want to tell you that I am your friend and can understand how you feel. I
understand you have to take a few grains of corn to keep yourself alive. One or two small
grains out of twenty four sheaves will not be missed by me. Your little nest has been
destroyed and blown away by the wind and shelter to protect you from the stormy December
winds which are cold and biting. Poor little mouse you have saw the fields bare and there is no
food left. And winter will be here soon you would be cozy and comfortable in your nest if I
hadn't destroyed it with my plough. Your little house must have taken you a long time to make.
Now you have been turned out for all your efforts to brave the winter's sleety dribble and
severe hoar frost. But my little friend you are not alone with your troubles perhaps it is just as
well that we only know what is happening minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day. No
matter how well you planned for the future your plan may have to be altered to suit the new
circumstances, if may be painful to do all this but if we are to survive we have to make the
best out of any set back. But mouse if it is any comfort to you I too have many problems but
my problems are much more serious than yours. We as humans can look and think either
backwards or plan for the future. As I look forward I can only make a guess at what might
happen. At the thought of what might happen I am afraid and I dread of a bleak future for me
too.
Derek. "Paraphrasing of To a Mouse." World Burns Club. 2004. Web. 7 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.worldburnsclub.com/schools/learning_resources/paraphrasing_of_to_a_mouse.htm>.
Diction of the Poem
The poem uses formal, concrete and vivid language. Even
though the poet is talking to a mouse, he still uses formal
words and structure. The wording of the poem allows the
reader to picture how the poet feels and what the situation is
like.
Example:
“ I'm truly sorry man's dominion
Has broken Nature's social union”
-Burns is using formal language to show his remorse to the
mouse.
The tone of the poem is
sympathetic. The speaker
feels sorry for the mouse. He
feels bad for destroying the
mouse’s shelter. But towards
the end of the poem, the
speaker starts to realize that
he has it worse off and he
starts to feel sorry for himself.
The mood in the poem is
also sad. I feel the author is
trying to make the reader
realize what a bad thing he
has done to the mouse. At
the end of the poem, the
speaker is then in turn
speaking of more sadness,
but towards the speaker’s
situation, making the
audience feel sad for him.
Rhetorical Situation
Robert Burns is speaking to the mouse in
the beginning of the poem. When the
mood of the poem starts to change, Burns
realizes he is not only talking to the
mouse, but he can also apply this to his
own life as a farmer. You can imply that
the speaker is Robert Burns, when he
uses the pronoun I.
Figurative Language
The poem does not contain many
similes and metaphors, it does
however have personification in some
parts.
Example of Personification:
“…the winds are scattering!”
Overall, the poem itself does not have
a lot of usage of figurative language.
Imagery
Robert Burns creates vivid images by
using bold words.
Example of Imagery:
- “…winter’s sleety dribble,”
-”An’ bleak December…”
Sound
Rhyme Scheme:
AAABAB CCCDCD EEEFEF GGGHGH
IIIKIK LLLMLM NNNONO PPPQPQ
The poem has some repetition, but like
the figurative language, it does not
contain a lot.
Example:
I ; An’ ; Thy
Structure of the Poem
Burns uses the six-line stanza in
rime couée, a favorite with him.
It’s a old stanzaic form used
often in Renaissance Scottish
verse. The first three lines
develop the idea in each stanza,
reinforcing
the
logic
by
maintaining line length and using
the rhyming triplet.
"To a Mouse." The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey. Web. 08 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.stockton.edu/~kinsellt/litresources/ayr/mouse.html>.
Conclusion/Evaluation
The poem itself was very hard to comprehend. The
language that the poem was written in was hard to
tell what the poet was trying to say. It helped to have
a English Version of the text to see the point the
author was trying to get across. The poem was very
sad in depressing together, there weren’t a lot of
happy points.