Poor Mailie's Elegy by Robert Burns
The elegy mourns Mailie, the bard’s beloved sheep and faithful neighbour, whose death leaves him grieving beyond remedy. He values her not as lost property but as a dear companion: she recognized him from far away, hurried to him with a kind bleat, and proved more faithful than any other friend. Mailie is praised as sensible, well behaved, and free from greedy mischief such as breaking fences. In her absence, the bard sits lonely, and even the sight of her yowe, who comes bleating over the hill for bread, makes him weep. Mailie is also celebrated for her fine breeding and beauty. The poem curses the maker of the fatal rope that causes choking terror and calls on bards by Doon and Ayr to join Robin’s sorrowful song, since his heart cannot rise above the loss of Mailie.
By Robert Burns · First published 1786 · Genre: Elegy, Pastoral Poetry, Mock-Elegy · 480 words
First lines
Lament in rhyme, lament in prose, / Wi' saut tears trickling down your nose; / Our bardie's fate is at a close, / Past a' remead! / The last, sad cape-stane o' his woes; / Poor Mailie's dead!
It's no the loss o' warl's gear, / That could sae bitter draw the tear, / Or mak our bardie, dowie, wear / The mourning weed: / He's lost a friend an' neebor dear / In Mailie dead.
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Genres
- Elegy — The poem is a formal lament for Mailie, repeatedly mourning her death and inviting other poets to join the speaker's sorrowful song.
- Pastoral Poetry — Its subject is a beloved sheep, and its rural setting includes fields, hills, grazing, bread scraps, Ayr, Doon, and the everyday life of a country bard.
- Mock-Elegy — Burns applies the elevated language and conventions of a serious funeral lament to the death of a sheep, creating deliberate comic disproportion while preserving genuine affection.
- Satirical Poetry — The poem gently satirizes poetic mourning conventions through exaggerated grief, ceremonial diction, and the solemn treatment of an animal's death.
Tags
elegy · pastoral poetry · mock elegy · animal death · sheep · animal companionship · grief · mourning · friendship · loyalty · loneliness · bereavement
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Poor Mailie's Elegy is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated 1786 CE.
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- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Burns
- Date: 1786 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Elegy, Pastoral Poetry, Mock-Elegy, Satirical Poetry, Scottish Dialect Poetry
- Length: 480 words
- Structure: 1 section, 8 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Very Easy (5th Grade or below)
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