My Spouse Nancy by Robert Burns

Nancy rejects her husband's demand for obedience and threatens to leave if he insists. She then imagines dying of heartbreak and haunting his bed; he answers calmly and jokes that marrying another woman like her would frighten all hell away.

By Robert Burns · Genre: Dramatic Poetry, Humor · 307 words

First lines

Tune-"My Jo Janet."

"Husband, husband, cease your strife, / Nor longer idly rave, Sir; / Tho' I am your wedded wife / Yet I am not your slave, Sir."

• Open reader

Genres

• Dramatic Poetry — Alternating verse speeches present a quarrel between Nancy and her husband, with repeated addresses to Nancy.
• Humor — The husband counters Nancy's escalating warnings with calm replies, ending by suggesting that another wife like her would frighten hell away.

Tags

marital quarrels · obedience · remarriage · haunting · comic verse

What this Textopian page supports

My Spouse Nancy 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: Dramatic Poetry, Humor
• Length: 307 words
• Structure: 1 section, 9 paragraphs
• Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)

Good citation fit

• Work identity for My Spouse Nancy by Robert Burns
• Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
• Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
• Readability and classroom-planning context
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More by Robert Burns

• Handsome Nell (1808)
• O Tibbie, I Hae Seen the Day (1786)
• I Dream'D I Lay (1792)
• In the Character of a Ruined Farmer (1786)
• Tragic Fragment (1786)
• The Tarbolton Lasses (1808)
• Ah, Woe is me, my Mother Dear (1808)
• Montgomerie's Peggy (1790)
• All works by Robert Burns