Second Epistle to Davie by Robert Burns
The speaker warmly thanks Davie, a fellow poet and neighbour, for his friendly letter, though he suspects Davie has praised his modest rhymes too generously. He wishes Davie lasting health, musical enjoyment, relief from worldly cares, and the affection of descendants in old age. He then rebukes Davie for reportedly neglecting the Muse, insisting that a talent like his should never be allowed to lie idle. The speaker describes himself struggling on Parnassus’ brink to make words chime, distracted at different times by love, drink, women, masons, and belated sober reflections. He portrays poets as especially thoughtless: apart from plans for rhyming, they have no settled schemes or cares, and, while they have anything in their pockets, they rush heedlessly onward without concern. Yet he declares rhyme his greatest, almost his only, pleasure. The Muse accompanies him at home, in the fields, at work, and at leisure, and is rarely idle despite the roughness of her measures. He urges Davie to remain faithful to the Muse, because the world may treat him badly, but the Muse will not desert him even in poverty, infirmity, or wandering from door to door.
By Robert Burns · First published 1786 · Genre: Verse Epistle, Scottish Vernacular Poetry, Lyric Poetry · 515 words
First lines
A Brother Poet
Auld Neibour, / I'm three times doubly o'er your debtor, / For your auld-farrant, frien'ly letter; / Tho' I maun say't I doubt ye flatter, / Ye speak sae fair; / For my puir, silly, rhymin clatter / Some less maun sair.
Similar titles
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- Reply To An Announcement By J Rankine by Robert Burns
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- To Sir Henry Wotton Sir More Than Kisses Letters Mingle Souls by John Donne
Genres
- Verse Epistle — The poem is explicitly framed as a second epistle addressed directly to the poet David Sillar, using the intimate, conversational conventions of a poetic letter.
- Scottish Vernacular Poetry — Burns writes predominantly in Scots dialect, employing colloquial vocabulary, idiom, and rural Scottish speech patterns as essential features of its voice and style.
- Lyric Poetry — The work expresses the speaker's personal feelings, pleasures, anxieties, and devotion to poetry in a compressed, musical verse form.
- Familiar Epistle — Its tone is informal, affectionate, humorous, and companionable, resembling a private exchange between fellow poets rather than a formal public address.
Tags
Scottish vernacular poetry · epistolary poem · poetic friendship · fellow poets · letter of thanks · humble verse · flattery · the Muse · poetic vocation · devotion to rhyme · creative inspiration · Parnassus
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Second Epistle to Davie is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated 1786 CE.
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: 1786 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Verse Epistle, Scottish Vernacular Poetry, Lyric Poetry, Familiar Epistle, Ars Poetica
- Length: 515 words
- Structure: 1 section, 9 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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