Talk of him that's Far Awa by Robert Burns
The speaker mourns the separation from a beloved person who is far away across the roaring ocean. She prays warmly for his welfare wherever he may be, while hope and fear rise and fall within her. As sleep approaches, imagined whispering spirits speak of the absent loved one. She contrasts her sorrow with those who have never suffered grief and therefore delight in carefree, gaudy daytime. Seeking comfort instead in gentle night and sleep, she asks kindly spirits to return and speak again of him who is far away.
By Robert Burns · First published 1793 · Genre: Lyric Poetry, Love Poetry, Romantic Poetry · 143 words
First lines
Musing on the roaring ocean, / Which divides my love and me; / Wearying heav'n in warm devotion, / For his weal where'er he be.
Hope and Fear's alternate billow / Yielding late to Nature's law, / Whispering spirits round my pillow, / Talk of him that's far awa.
Ye whom sorrow never wounded, / Ye who never shed a tear, / Care-untroubled, joy-surrounded, / Gaudy day to you is dear.
Gentle night, do thou befriend me, / Downy sleep, the curtain draw; / Spirits kind, again attend me, / Talk of him that's far awa!
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Talk of him that's Far Awa is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated 1793 CE.
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- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Burns
- Date: 1793 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Lyric Poetry, Love Poetry, Romantic Poetry, Separation Poetry, Melancholic Poetry
- Length: 143 words
- Structure: 1 section, 4 paragraphs
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- Work identity for Talk of him that's Far Awa by Robert Burns
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Genres
- Lyric Poetry — The work is a short, musical first-person poem focused on concentrated feeling, patterned stanzas, and an intimate speaking voice.
- Love Poetry — Its central subject is the speaker's longing for a beloved separated from her by the ocean.
- Romantic Poetry — It emphasizes intense personal emotion, nature, night, dreams, spirits, and the imaginative life of a solitary sufferer.
- Separation Poetry — The poem specifically portrays emotional pain caused by physical distance from a loved one who is 'far awa.'
Tags
Scottish poetry · lyric poem · love and separation · absent beloved · longing · yearning · melancholy · sorrow · hope and fear · prayer for a loved one · the roaring ocean · distance and travel