This poem begins with a simile which is comparing the love he has for this woman to a red rose. As stated here “O my Luve`s like a red, red rose, That`s newly sprung in June. “ Or in other words, the speaker’s love is like a flower that has just sprouted from the ground. His love for this woman is very fresh, vibrant and new, meaning it will stay solid and connected, and last for a long period of time. He then continues through the opening stanza with another simile, now comparing the girl herself to a sweet melodie. `O my Luve’s like the melodie, That’s sweetly played in tune. “ Here he is trying to say that, like a sweet melody that`s in tune, his love is perfect and in sync. She is just right and she has no faults and is beautiful and sweet. The second stanza starts, and the poet opens off by saying “As fair art thou, my bonnie lass, So deep in luve am I. “ This explains how he is so genuinely attracted by this woman`s beauty as “bonnie lass“ is an old word for gorgeous or beautiful.
To end this stanza, he says “And I will luve thee still, my dear, Till a’ the seas gang dry,“ but the seas will probably never “gang dry,“ so the speaker seems to be saying that he will love his “lass” forever, or at least until there is an apocalypse. The starting of the third stanza is repeated by the same line that ends off the second stanza. He declares “Till a’ the seas gang dry, my dear, And the rocks melt wi’ the sun. ` He is again reminding us that he will love his “bonnie lass” until the seas “gang dry. “ The sea going dry is highly unlikely just like the rocks melting, (unless they get thrown into a volcano, or a meteor strikes the earth) so the speaker is again emphasizing the fact that he will love her everlastingly or at least until long after their lives are over. This is followed by the poet saying “I will luve thee still, my dear, While the sands o’ life shall run. ` He phrases these two lines very creatively as it means, “while I’m still alive. ” Ultimately he`s saying that until he is alive, she will be loved sincerely by him, and won’t be left alone. In the last stanza he writes “And fare thee weel, my only Luve, And I will come again“ followed by, “ And I will come again, my Luve, Tho’ it were ten thousand mile. “ He concludes the poem by sort of saying “farewell for now“ and I will be back eventually.
He says that he will return, and no matter what distance he has to cover just to see her, he will have no doubt in his mind of not doing so. Poetic Devices: The first very noticeable poetic device is the one in which Robert Burns is comparing his love for this woman to a red, red rose. This is an example of a simile, and he basically is portraying that his love for this specific woman is very bright, fresh, faithful relationship, and it is not dull and awkward. Another device that is in this poem is imagery.
For some reason, but when I read the line “Till a` the seas gang dry,“ I pictured a long period from now, where the seas are going to be close to empty, as water is going to be scarce and the guy is expressing his love in the sense that even until the seas go dry, which is like almost never, he will love her even beyond when they`re gone from this life. Also lastly, there is another comparison made between the love he has for this woman to a sweet melody. He says “O my luve`s like the melodie that`s sweetly played in tune. ` This poetic device describes a simile, where he is explaining that when you hear a beautiful melody, played by someone who is playing it in the right tune, it sounds beautiful and you get that warm feeling inside, this is how she makes him feel. Theme: Rocks, seas, sand, roses – there’s plenty of nature in “A Red, Red Rose. ” It almost seems as if the poet couldn’t describe his love without mentioning some part of the natural world (the seas, rocks, roses, the seasons), which suggests that human emotions are pure, that they are just as natural as rocks and flowers.
Yet even though emotions are natural, they appear to possess a longer shelf life than the stuff of the great outdoors. When the seas go dry and the rocks melt, the speaker says, his love will still be chugging along. The Natural world plays a huge role in poetry, because honestly the best things in life are free, and this more specifically is nature. Poets use nature as a way of reflection upon human emotions, and give you a more distinct feel.
