The Parting Kiss by Robert Burns
The poem celebrates a kiss as the tender seal of affection and the first pure pledge of future happiness between young lovers. It presents the kiss as a silent but eloquent confession of passion, combining innocence, fondness, and the dawning promise of love. In parting, the kiss becomes a sorrowful joy: though the lovers’ lips must separate, their final gesture expresses their affection more deeply and sincerely than words can.
By Robert Burns · First published 1792 · Genre: Lyric Poetry, Love Poetry, Romantic Poetry · 109 words
First lines
Humid seal of soft affections, / Tenderest pledge of future bliss, / Dearest tie of young connections, / Love's first snowdrop, virgin kiss!
Speaking silence, dumb confession, / Passion's birth, and infant's play, / Dove-like fondness, chaste concession, / Glowing dawn of future day!
Sorrowing joy, Adieu's last action, / (Lingering lips must now disjoin), / What words can ever speak affection / So thrilling and sincere as thine!
Similar titles
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- The Farewell by Robert Burns
- Three Years Old by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
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- Farewell To Eliza by Robert Burns
- Tho Cruel Fate Should Bid Us Part by Robert Burns
Genres
- Lyric Poetry — A brief, highly musical poem expressing an intimate emotional moment through concentrated imagery, repetition, and exclamatory language.
- Love Poetry — The poem centers on romantic affection, the first kiss, tender attachment, and the emotional significance of lovers' physical parting.
- Romantic Poetry — Its emphasis on sincere feeling, idealized youthful love, natural imagery, and emotional intensity aligns with Romantic poetic sensibilities.
- Farewell Poetry — The final stanza focuses on separation and the parting kiss as 'Adieu's last action,' combining love with imminent loss.
Tags
love poetry · lyric poem · romantic affection · parting lovers · farewell · first kiss · young love · innocence · chaste love · tenderness · passion · future happiness
What this Textopian page supports
The Parting Kiss is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated 1792 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: 1792 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Lyric Poetry, Love Poetry, Romantic Poetry, Farewell Poetry, Sentimental Poetry
- Length: 109 words
- Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs
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