Epistle to Hugh Parker
By Robert Burns
In this strange land, this uncouth clime,
A land unknown to prose or rhyme;
Where words ne’er crost the muse’s heckles,
Nor limpet in poetic shackles:
A land that prose did never view it,
Except when drunk he stacher’t thro’ it,
Here, ambush’d by the chimla cheek,
Hid in an atmosphere of reek,
I hear a wheel thrum i’ the neuk,
I hear it — for in vain I leuk. —
The red peat gleams, a fiery kernel,
Enhusked by a fog infernal:
Here, for my wonted rhyming raptures,
I sit and count my sins by chapters;
For life and spunk like ither Christians,
I’m dwindled down to mere existence,
Wi’ nae converse but Gallowa’ bodies,
Wi’ nae kend face but Jenny Geddes. [1]
Jenny, my Pegasean pride!
Dowie she saunters down Nithside,
And ay a westlin leuk she throws,
While tears hap o’er her auld brown nose!
Was it for this, wi’ canny care,
Thou bure the bard through many a shire?
At howes or hillocks never stumbled,
And late or early never grumbled? —
O had I power like inclination,
I’d heeze thee up a constellation,
To canter with the Sagitarre,
Or loup the ecliptic like a bar;
Or turn the pole like any arrow;
Or, when auld Phœbus bids good-morrow,
Down the zodiac urge the race,
And cast dirt on his godship’s face;
For I could lay my bread and kail
He’d ne’er cast saut upo’ thy tail. —
Wi’ a’ this care and a’ this grief,
And sma,’ sma’ prospect of relief,
And nought but peat reek i’ my head,
How can I write what ye can read? —
Tarbolton, twenty-fourth o’ June,
Ye’ll find me in a better tune;
But till we meet and weet our whistle,
Tak this excuse for nae epistle.
FOOTNOTE:
[1] His mare.
Poem Analysis:
Robert Burns’s “Epistle to Hugh Parker” is a satirical and self-reflective poem written in the Scots dialect, rich in local color and poetic wit. As one of Burns's many verse letters (epistles), it showcases his distinctive voice—blending humor, complaint, humility, and poetic flair. Though written in a casual and humorous tone, the poem offers deeper insights into Burns's personal struggles, creative frustrations, and cultural setting.
Summary and Context
In this poetic letter to his friend Hugh Parker, Burns writes from a place of discomfort and isolation in rural Scotland—likely during a sojourn or a temporary stay in a particularly dreary location. The speaker (Burns himself) describes his surroundings as bleak, smoke-filled, and uninspiring. He laments his creative block, the lack of stimulating company, and his emotional and intellectual weariness. Most importantly, he explains why he cannot send a more proper or inspired letter: he is in no fit state of poetic enthusiasm.
Themes
1. Creative Block and Environmental Influence
Burns vividly describes the uninspiring atmosphere of the place where he writes—“this strange land, this uncouth clime”—where the very air is thick with peat smoke and the muse is absent. This sets the scene for a meditation on how physical environment affects the creative mind. The land is so foreign to poetic tradition, he jokes, that “prose ne’er crost the muse’s heckles,” and if prose did come through, it was only “when drunk he stacher’t thro’ it.”
This humorous exaggeration emphasizes the poet’s sense of alienation, both physically and mentally. His poetic spark has dimmed, and even his trusty muse—represented by his mare, Jenny Geddes—has become despondent.
2. Friendship and Apology
The poem functions as a kind of apology to his friend Hugh Parker. Burns explains that he cannot produce a proper epistle due to his poor condition. But the poem is the epistle—a witty paradox that underscores Burns’s creative inventiveness. Despite claiming poetic exhaustion, he still delivers an amusing, self-aware, and poetically rich letter.
3. Humor and Satire
The poem is filled with Burns's characteristic humor, often self-deprecating or mocking of poetic conventions. He whimsically proposes elevating his old mare to a constellation, letting her gallop alongside the stars and even mock the sun (Phoebus) by throwing dirt in his face. Such absurd images reflect Burns's irreverence and playful defiance of classical and literary decorum.
4. Nostalgia and Frustration
Jenny Geddes, the horse, serves as a symbol of his poetic journey and faithful muse. Her decline, “dowie she saunters down Nithside,” parallels Burns’s own creative fatigue. There’s an undercurrent of longing for better days when inspiration came easily, and his muse was energetic and dependable.
Language and Style
The poem is written in Scots dialect, which is central to Burns's identity as a national poet of Scotland. This choice of language celebrates local culture while emphasizing the authenticity of his voice. It also provides a sense of intimacy, as though Burns is speaking directly and casually to his friend.
Key stylistic features include:
- Vivid imagery: Burns conjures up images of “peat reek,” “fiery kernel,” and “fog infernal,” immersing the reader in his sensory experience.
- Personification: The horse Jenny is personified as a poetic muse, complete with a dramatic emotional arc.
- Metaphor and hyperbole: Burns suggests making Jenny a celestial body—a wild imaginative leap that reflects his whimsical despair.
- Satirical tone: Burns pokes fun at poetic conventions, classical references, and even himself.
Interpretation of Jenny Geddes (the horse)
Jenny is more than a beast of burden; she represents Burns’s poetic vitality and inspiration. She has carried him “through many a shire,” never faltering—an image of loyalty and creative endurance. Now, however, she too seems tired and dispirited, mirroring Burns’s own low spirits. His comic vision of promoting her to the heavens reflects both affection and absurdity—fitting for a poet known for mixing the sublime with the ridiculous.
Though Robert Burns insists that he is too dispirited and uninspired to write a proper epistle, “Epistle to Hugh Parker” ends up being a cleverly constructed, highly entertaining, and deeply human poem. It demonstrates Burns’s genius for turning complaint into art, and for weaving humor, friendship, and existential reflection into verse.
The poem is a testament to how even poetic silence—or the inability to write—can itself become the subject of poetry. In that sense, this “non-epistle” is a brilliant epistle after all.