Lines on Fergusson, the Poet by Robert Burns
The speaker mourns Fergusson's death before his career had fully begun, then asks why worth and genius suffer poverty while titled knaves prosper.
By Robert Burns · Genre: Elegy, Social Criticism · 85 words
First lines
Ill-fated genius! Heaven-taught Fergusson! / What heart that feels and will not yield a tear, / To think Life's sun did set e'er well begun / To shed its influence on thy bright career.
O why should truest Worth and Genius pine / Beneath the iron grasp of Want and Woe, / While titled knaves and idiot-Greatness shine / In all the splendour Fortune can bestow?
What this Textopian page supports
Lines on Fergusson, the Poet is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Burns
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Elegy, Social Criticism
- Length: 85 words
- Structure: 1 section, 2 paragraphs
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- Work identity for Lines on Fergusson, the Poet by Robert Burns
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- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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Genres
- Elegy — The speaker addresses the dead Fergusson and calls for tears over his life ending before his career could fully develop.
- Social Criticism — The closing stanza contrasts worth and genius suffering poverty with titled knaves enjoying wealth.
Tags
mourning · early death · poets · poverty · social inequality