The Rantin' Dog, the Daddie o'T by Robert Burns
The speaker anxiously asks who will buy her baby-clothes, care for her crying, and kiss her, naming “the rantin’ dog” as the child’s father. She demands to know who will admit the fault, provide the “groanin maut,” and tell her what to call it. As she anticipates sitting in the creepie-chair, she asks for Rob to sit beside her and says she seeks no one else. She longs for him to talk with her when she is alone, make her happily restless, and kiss her again.
By Robert Burns · First published 1792 · Genre: Lyric Poetry, Scottish Folk Song, Comic Poetry · 177 words
First lines
Tune-"Whare'll our guidman lie."
O wha my babie-clouts will buy? / O wha will tent me when I cry? / Wha will kiss me where I lie? / The rantin' dog, the daddie o't.
O wha will own he did the faut? / O wha will buy the groanin maut? / O wha will tell me how to ca't? / The rantin' dog, the daddie o't.
When I mount the creepie-chair, / Wha will sit beside me there? / Gie me Rob, I'll seek nae mair, / The rantin' dog, the daddie o't.
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Genres
- Lyric Poetry — The work is a short, stanzaic song-poem centered on a speaker's personal voice, repeated refrain, emotional expression, and musical rhythm.
- Scottish Folk Song — Written to the tune 'Whare'll our guidman lie,' it uses Scots dialect, a recurring chorus, and the conventions of traditional vernacular song.
- Comic Poetry — Its treatment of pregnancy, paternity, courtship, and domestic need is knowingly humorous, especially through the repeated identification of the father as 'the rantin' dog.'
- Satirical Poetry — The poem lightly satirizes male sexual irresponsibility and the social complications of illegitimacy by pressing the absent or evasive father to acknowledge his role.
Tags
Scottish vernacular poetry · 18th-century Scotland · love song · pregnancy · unwed motherhood · paternity · courtship · sexual desire · romantic longing · female speaker · fatherhood · domestic life
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The Rantin' Dog, the Daddie o'T is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated 1792 CE.
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- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Burns
- Date: 1792 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Lyric Poetry, Scottish Folk Song, Comic Poetry, Satirical Poetry, Love Poetry
- Length: 177 words
- Structure: 1 section, 5 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Very Easy (5th Grade or below)
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