Song Composed in August by Robert Burns
The speaker welcomes August’s autumnal pleasures: westlin winds, guns, blooming heather, ripening grain, and bright moonlight that accompanies his thoughts of his beloved. He observes how different birds and creatures seek their own fitting places—the partridge on fruitful fells, the plover in mountains, the woodcock in dells, the hern by fountains, the cushat in groves, and smaller birds among hazel and thorn. He reflects that every creature finds pleasure according to its nature, whether sociably joined with others or wandering alone. Against this natural happiness, he condemns tyrannic human dominion, especially the sportsman’s pleasure in killing birds, marked by cries and bloodied wings. Turning to Peggy, he invites her to walk with him through the clear evening, among swallows, blue sky, fading green and yellow fields, rustling corn, fruiting thorn, and all the happy creatures of nature. As they stroll and speak until moonlight brightens, he imagines embracing her and declaring that neither spring rain to flowers nor autumn to the farmer can equal her dearness to him.
By Robert Burns · First published 1786 · Genre: Lyric Poetry, Pastoral Poetry, Love Poetry · 403 words
First lines
Tune-"I had a horse, I had nae mair."
Now westlin winds and slaught'ring guns / Bring Autumn's pleasant weather; / The moorcock springs on whirring wings / Amang the blooming heather: / Now waving grain, wide o'er the plain, / Delights the weary farmer; / And the moon shines bright, when I rove at night, / To muse upon my charmer.
Similar titles
- Handsome Nell by Robert Burns
- A Nutting We Will Go by Sabine Baring Gould
- Love Where You Go by Marie Van Vorst
- Pattran by Edwina Stanton Babcock
- A Hunting Morning by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
- Hunting Song by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Genres
- Lyric Poetry — A short, songlike first-person poem that expresses personal feeling through regular stanzas, rhyme, and musical rhythm.
- Pastoral Poetry — The poem idealizes rural life, agricultural abundance, wildlife, heather, fields, grain, and an evening walk through the countryside.
- Love Poetry — Its central emotional movement is the speaker's affectionate address to Peggy and his declaration that she is dearer than seasonal beauty.
- Nature Poetry — Detailed observations of birds, crops, weather, moonlight, plants, and changing autumn colors make the natural world a dominant subject.
Tags
Scottish lyric poetry · August · autumn · rural Scotland · pastoral landscape · nature poetry · love poem · courtship · Peggy · evening walk · moonlight · harvest
What this Textopian page supports
Song Composed in August 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: Lyric Poetry, Pastoral Poetry, Love Poetry, Nature Poetry, Song
- Length: 403 words
- Structure: 1 section, 6 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Standard (8th-9th Grade)
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