"Honest Poverty" is one of Burns' most poignant accusatory poems, created during the French Revolution (1789) under the influence of the American revolutionary publicist Thomas Paine's book The Rights of Man. "Honest Poverty" has become a widespread song among the Scottish people. Many contemporaries called this verse "The Marseillaise of ordinary people."

Scottish in his poem talks about eternal questions: what is poverty and wealth, what is honor and intelligence. How honor and intelligence are combined with wealth and poverty. The main theme is honesty with oneself, spiritual purity. The author urges people not to be ashamed of their position, the poverty that surrounds them. He asks them not to be ashamed of who they are and not to compare themselves with the so-called "nobility". And those who do this, on the contrary, are scolded and called “pathetic”. We see evidence of this already in the first lines of the verse:

Who is honest in his poverty

Shame and all

The most pathetic of people

Cowardly slave and so on.

Why Honest Poverty? Why exactly did the author give his poem such a name? I think because, according to Burns, behind expensive horses, luxurious houses, magnificent clothes, a sea of ​​​​precious stones and other things, only meanness, deceit, stupidity and other negative qualities inherent in "false" people were often hidden. He knows that people who are honest, conscientious, honoring morality often end up with nothing in this life and make up the class of the poor. And those who are more cunning, meaner and have most of these qualities, and there is the "top", "know". That is why poverty is honest. After all, if you look through expensive things, all the splendor of clothes and luxurious jewelry, then behind it lies a lot of lies, it is the foundation of all this. And if you look at what an ordinary poor peasant has, then don’t look at anything, everything that he has got out of honesty and originality. Indeed, often following morality and the call of justice, we end up with nothing materially, but he is honest with himself. The real dignity of a man is in his mind and diligence, so says Burns. You can't cover stupidity with a silk dress, you can't drown dishonesty in expensive wine.

According to the plot of the poem, we see that here the deceitful rich are opposed to each other - the honest poor. What is revealed to us by comparing the lives of some and others

We eat bread and drink water

We cover ourselves with rags

And all that stuff

Meanwhile, the fool and the rogue

Dressed in silk and drinking wine

And all that stuff.

In composition, the poem resembles a standard folk song (which it later became). There is a verse, with a certain meaning, after which there is a constant repetition of certain words, which serve as a kind of chant.

For all that,

With all that

Similar repetitions are observed in almost all folk songs. The first part of the refrain remains unchanged, while the other is constantly changing, and relates to the previous verse in terms of theme, which forms a standard scheme of interconnected semantic parts that have a beginning, middle and end.

The very tone of the poem and its mood does not seem tragic, despite the fact that its role is to denounce all the vices of the deceitful and dishonest and oppose them to honest beggars. Burns himself was a peasant-man of the people, and therefore he wrote in a simple and uncomplicated style, in ordinary simple words, understandable to any mortal. This is where his simple and uplifting poetry comes from. Reading "Honest Poverty" you understand why many lines of his works have become slogans, aphorisms. Having dedicated his work to ordinary people, this poet deservedly received nationwide recognition and love. Also, frequent rhetorical exclamations add to the energy and emotionality of the verse:

Wealth -Stamp on gold

And gold - We ourselves!

Or you can observe the same thing at the end of the third chorus:

A log will remain a log

And in orders, and in ribbons!

And so almost at the end of every verse, except for the second.

There is also a large number of phonetic repetitions (alliteration) of some sonorous consonant sounds, and in particular [l ”], [m], [n], which, in turn, gives even more elation and sets the rhythm: The lyrical hero does not separates himself from the crowd, but rather unites himself with people like him:

• 1. Let us be poor
• 2. We eat bread and drink water
• 3. We cover ourselves with rags

He acts on behalf of the people, expresses their thoughts in his poem, talking about their daily life. He does not strive to stand out, he calls to unite everyone who is his "brother" spiritual and material, which again shows us him as a spokesman for the thoughts of "mere mortals" who never knew what chic wines, puffy dresses and expensive overseas entertainment are.

The main role in the simplicity of this verse, I played, of course, its size. Not loaded, not cumbersome, light and simple disyllabic iambic is the best choice for a poem on this subject. As has been repeatedly said, Burns' poems easily fit into music and are remembered, therefore, in terms of rhythm and meaning, "BW" easily turned into a widespread Scottish folk song, vaguely reminiscent of the primitive compositions of an earlier time, with which people accompanied their work or any games. .

Almost every line is imbued with positive moods, faith in a better future and that justice will prevail. The author is not shy, and directly expresses his position with proud confidence and a look to the future:

The day will come and the hour will strike

When mind and honor

The whole earth will have a turn

Stay in first place.

Again, reading these lines, you involuntarily begin to believe in his words. And for the most part, these verses were written in order to raise the people's spirit and prevent it from falling. To support everyone who is already tired of all the troubles that have fallen on him in this position, and was able to look further. In a sense, we can safely say that Burns could boldly raise uprisings and be a people's leader, since he literally guesses the thoughts of every person in this position.

We understand the main idea of ​​the verse-I through the antithesis - the constant opposition of poverty and wealth, honesty and deceit, for example, through household items or from stories about everyday life:

We eat bread and drink water

We cover ourselves with rags

And all that stuff

Meanwhile, the fool and the rogue

Dressed in silk and drinking wine

And all that stuff.

accusatory poem antithesis

The poet contrasts smart and honest workers with noble, but stupid and ignorant people. The poor are often very worthy people. A good person can hide behind a bad dress. And vice versa, who wears rich clothes, he often turns out to be "a fool and a rogue." Therefore, Burns urges us to "judge not by dress", but the poor - not to be ashamed of their poverty.

To enhance the effect of antithesis, as well as to give special lightness and emotionality to the verse, the poet uses frequent repetitions and comparisons (see above). Today, verse-e is popular for its subject matter. It is easy to remember and can become very popular if it is transcribed by some contemporary artist to new music. For example, like the same songs of Tsoi or Vysotsky, which young people love to sing around the fire. Now it is not very popular, but it exists in the performance of such little-known singers as Maria Cherkaskaya, Ephraim Flaks, etc., and it is also known to play it at the play "Robin Hood" staged by one of the Moscow musical theaters.

Essay

The Scottish poet Robert Burns in his poem "Honest Poverty" talks about eternal questions: what is poverty and wealth, what is honor and intelligence. How honor and intelligence are combined with wealth and poverty.

The poem contrasts poor, but honest people and rich, but dishonest people. He argues that wealth does not mean that its owner is an honest and noble person. Quite the contrary: often a rich person turns out to be stupid and a scoundrel. I think that in the time of Robert Burns (and he lived in the 18th century) it was so. Then everything in England was run by rich and noble people. They were not necessarily the smartest, but their money and their titles gave them the right to rule the country. At the same time, many smart and worthy people could not find application for their abilities. After all, they were poor and ignoble. Here Robert Burns speaks in his poem criticizing such orders:

* We eat bread and drink water,
*We cover ourselves with rags
* And all that stuff
* Meanwhile, a fool and a rogue
* Dressed in silk and drinking wine
* And all that stuff.

For Robert Burns himself, the real nobility are those people who earn their living by their work. He says that a person cannot be judged by a dress (and I completely agree with him on this), and most importantly, what he can do and what kind of soul he has. If a person is kind, if he is smart and honest, then it does not matter who he is by origin and how much money he has. And vice versa, no matter how much money and titles a person has, they will not replace his mind or conscience:

* With all that,
* With all that,
* Although he is all in braids,
* A log will remain a log
* And in orders and ribbons!

At that time, absolute monarchy was the basis of the social system in many countries. And the king could do whatever he wanted. No one could argue with him in anything. No one could criticize his actions, because he was the most noble person in the country. And he could appoint a stupid or dishonest person to any post just because he is noble or submissive to him: the King of his lackey

* Appoint a general
*But he can't anyone
* Designate an honest fellow.

And everyone around should obey such decisions. Common people had to bow when meeting a noble just because he was a lord. And no one was interested that this lord could be "a log of a log." To such people, Robert Berne opposes smart and honest workers. For him, there is no one better than these people. And let them have little money, but they are rich in soul. And he urges these people not to be ashamed of their poverty, not to think badly of themselves just because you have an empty wallet: Who is honest in his poverty

* Ashamed and everything else,
* The most miserable of people
* Cowardly slave and so on.

I think so too. It seems to me that when the poor begin to bow before wealth, this is wrong. The man is so self-degrading. He becomes a real slave. Let not actually, but inside yourself, in your heart. He is a money worker. Robert Berne is absolutely right: no money, no awards, no flattery and "other" can replace a person's mind or honor. I, like the wonderful Scottish poet Robert Burns, really want that day and hour to come, all people will be equal before each other, when there will be no noble and ignoble, there will be no poor and rich. And in the first place everyone will have the mind and honor!

Walter Scott recalled: “He felt great modesty, simplicity and ease ... In his whole appearance, intelligence and strength were felt, and only his eyes betrayed his poetic nature and temperament. Large and dark, they burned when he talked about something with force and enthusiasm. Never in my life have I seen such eyes. His speech was full of freedom and confidence, without the slightest smugness. He expressed his convictions firmly, but with restraint and modesty. He read his poems slowly, expressively and with great force ... "

The future poet was born near the Scottish city of Eyre, in the family of a poor farmer. The family did not have their own land. I had to rent from the landlord. From childhood, Robert worked in the field, helped his father. I had to work hard. But the stony soil gave a meager harvest. The poverty of the family is also evidenced by the fact that Robert and his brother had one pair of shoes for two, so when it was time to go to school, they studied in turn.

Rice. 1. Portrait. Robert Burns. 1759 - 1796 ()

Despite poverty, the atmosphere of love and kindness reigned in the family. Mother from childhood instilled a love for Scottish culture, sang folk songs, told fairy tales. The father was engaged in raising his sons and even wrote for them the book "Instructions on Faith and Piety." About his father, Robert will write kind words:

My father was an honest farmer.

He didn't have enough

But from their heirs

He demanded order.

Taught dignity to keep,

Though there is no penny in the pockets.

It is more terrible - honor to change,

Than to be in torn rags.

The poetic gift woke up early in Robert. In his notebook he will write: “The rhyme and melody of the verse have become the voice of my heart. I longed to communicate with people, possessed a natural liveliness of character, the ability to notice everything, to make my own judgments about everything.

Robert reflects his observations and thoughts in poems, which he often composes while following the plow. Burns sings of the life of the common people, the hard work of peasants, plowmen, coal miners, shepherds and blacksmiths - "those who are pure in heart, straight in soul and lived the way they should", those who truly love their land and admire its intoxicating beauty. The poet writes about those who know how to value friendship and love:

No loud rank, no papal rank,

Nor the London Rich Bank

Bliss is not given.

But the reward of the awards -

Tear of love, participation look,

Good eye smile!

And if we get into trouble,

And we will find good in it.

Let the trouble be hard for us

But in it you will know

How to distinguish good from evil

Where is the truth and where is the lie.

Burns' timid attempt to publish his poems unexpectedly for a poor peasant was crowned with success. In 1786, his first book of poems was published, only 600 copies. They broke up in a few days! The book was read everywhere! The collection reached the capital of Scotland - Edinburgh, and from there came a letter from the poet Blacklock with a laudatory review and a promise of support to the talented poet.

On November 27, 1786, on a strange horse, without a single letter of recommendation and almost without money, Burns set off for the capital, taking with him his new works. Edinburgh welcomed "poet-plowman", "poetic miracle from the province". The following collections of poems and poems will be printed here.

Burns' poems captivated readers with their sincerity, simplicity, and purity. They are close to folk ballads and songs, the love for which the poet absorbed with his mother's milk. Burns was the first to show the Scots and the English the importance of folk speech, publishing at the age of 27 a collection of poems, mostly written in the Scottish dialect, and then he managed to collect and prepare for publication works of Scottish poetic folklore: folk tales, ballads, songs, poems. It can be said that Robert Burns rediscovered the treasury of folk art for his homeland.

In one of his last poems, the poet exclaimed:

Long live the right to write!

Only he is afraid of the true page,

Who is forced to hide the truth.

All his life the poet searched for the truth. What is the truth about?

Honest poverty.

Rice. 2. Peasant family. Hood. Louis Le Nain ()

Who is honest in his poverty

Ashamed and everything else

The most miserable of people

Cowardly slave and so on.

For all that,

For all that,

Let us be poor

Wealth -

stamp on gold,

And golden -

We eat bread and drink water

We cover ourselves with rags

And all that stuff

Meanwhile, the fool and the rogue

Dressed in silk and drinking wine

And all that stuff.

For all that,

For all that,

Don't judge by the dress.

Who honestly feeds on labor,

Such I call the nobility,

Rice. 3. Courtiers ()

This jester here is a natural lord.

We must bow to him.

But let him be stiff and proud,

A log will remain a log!

For all that,

For all that,

Though he is all in braids, -

A log will remain a log

And in orders, and in ribbons!

The king of his lackey

Appoint a general

But he can't nobody

Designate an honest fellow.

For all that,

For all that,

Awards, flattery

Do not replace

Mind and honor

And all that stuff!

The day will come and the hour will strike,

When mind and honor

The whole earth will have a turn

Stay in first place.

For all that,

For all that,

I can predict you

What will be the day

When around

All people will become brothers!

Composition features:

verse + chorus;

refrain (repetition of lines in the chorus);

antithesis (artistic opposition).

Examples of opposition (antitheses):

Conclusion: the life of the poor is harsh, full of deprivation and grief, but if you choose between honest poverty and vile wealth, Robert Burns is on the side of the poor.

In the poem "Honest Poverty" Robert Burns is merciless to the rich. His criticism is striking in its bold directness. He calls the lord - jester and log (i.e. blockhead), general - lackey. The poet sympathizes with the king who surrounded himself liars and fools.

Burns dreams of a time when honesty and integrity will be rewarded:

The day will come and the hour will strike,

When mind and honor

The whole earth will have a turn

Stay in first place.

The poet himself did not live to see that day. He died at the age of 37. Hard, exhausting work, constant deprivation, need - all this brought his premature death closer.

In Russian literature, Burns' poetry becomes popular from the beginning of the 19th century. So, for example, I. S. Turgenev wrote to Nekrasov: “I am sure in advance that you will be delighted with Burns and will soon undertake to translate him with pleasure. Burns is a pure fountain of poetry."

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1. Carefully consider the illustrations for Burns' poem "Honest Poverty". What compositional technique do they enhance?
2. Think about the intonation with which you need to read the poem "Honest Poverty." (sad or uplifting?)

From Guest >>

Please help, Robert Burns, Honest Poverty. Did you like Burns' song? Why? What angers the poet? What does he hope for and what does he believe in?

Here is the verse:

Who is honest in his poverty

Ashamed and everything else

The most miserable of people

Cowardly slave and so on.

For all that,

For all that,

Let us be poor

Wealth -

stamp on gold,

And golden -

We eat bread and drink water

We cover ourselves with rags

And all that stuff

Meanwhile, the fool and the rogue

Dressed in silk and drinking wine

And all that stuff.

For all that,

For all that,

Don't judge by the dress.

Who honestly feeds on labor,

Such I call the nobility,

This jester here is a natural lord.

We must bow to him.

But let him be stiff and proud,

A log will remain a log!

For all that,

For all that,

Though he is all in braids, -

A log will remain a log

And in orders, and in ribbons!

The king of his lackey

Appoint a general

But he can't nobody

Designate an honest fellow.

For all that,

For all that,

Awards, flattery

Do not replace

Mind and honor

And all that stuff!

The day will come and the hour will strike,

When mind and honor

The whole earth will have a turn

Stay in first place.

For all that,

For all that,

I can predict you

What will be the day

When around

All people will become brothers!

Answer left Guest

1. Good verse. The writing style is not to my liking.

2. Because I share his views on society.

3. The poet is outraged by the "wrong elite", he suggests that the elite is not the top of society, but its fertile stratum. In the elite, he puts such definitions as: honest, decent, smart, courageous. But many others, I think quite differently. It infuriates him. He is also outraged that not all people get what they deserve. He adheres to the rules of Leninism "from everyone on ability, to each on needs", but his views are clearly not shared by everyone.

4. He hopes that people will finally reconsider their priorities and put the best qualities in themselves first. He believes that the time will come when people will stop fighting for "a place in the sun", that someday people will understand that the most important thing is not wealth and power, but humanity.

Rate the answer

Robert Burns, the famous Scottish poet, wrote the poem "Honest Poverty". The domestic reader probably got acquainted with this work translated by Samuil Marshak. As can be seen from the title of the work, the author asks eternal questions. It is important for him to understand: what is poverty and what is wealth, what is honor and what is intelligence. Is it possible for one person to combine honor and intelligence at the same time as poverty? Can a rich man be called honest and intelligent?

Robert Burns lived in the 18th century. At that time, Britain was ruled by wealthy English nobility. They were not always the smartest and could make informed and rational decisions, but the presence of titles and money gave them many rights, including the opportunity to take part in the government of the country.

At the same time, many people who showed intelligence and honored dignity, but at the same time were not rich enough and did not have a noble origin, could not find themselves in this life, were not included in the processes of governing the country. This situation seemed unfair to the poet, and criticism of the then order is openly and loudly heard in his work.

Whom does Burns consider to be real noble and worthy of reverence people? First of all, he refers to them those who independently earn their living by their labor. According to Burns, it is impossible to judge a person by the clothes he wears, but the wine he drinks, by the food he eats - such assessments will be superficial and will not fully reflect the inner peace of the interlocutor. Much more important are the spiritual characteristics of a person - kindness, intelligence, honesty. And then questions of origin, the presence of money in the wallet fade into the background.

The poem is built on the opposition of the poor, but honest, with the rich, but dishonest. The author claims that wealth often does not give its owner the characteristics of an honest and noble person. More often there are people whom wealth has made stupid and dishonest. Never, according to the author, money and titles will replace the mind and conscience, which, unfortunately, were lost on the way to fame and fortune.

According to literary critics, the political events that took place in Europe during the life of Robert Burns (for example, the French Revolution) could not but affect him, in his manner of writing and coverage of social problems. The author sincerely considered the revolution a way out for the situation that had arisen in England, seeing no other way to save a person from poverty and lawlessness, into which the desires of those in power plunged them.

In the course of the story, Burns attacks the absolute monarchy as the social order that dominated Europe at that time. According to the author, a king who could do whatever he thought of. which could not be argued at all and which could not be criticized, in fact, was the quintessence of all the evil that dominated the society of that time.

The Scottish poet's poems have been popular among literature lovers for over 200 years. The lines of his most famous works eventually became the slogans under which revolutions were made. Reading Honest Poverty, one wonders how a simple farmer (namely, the author had such an origin) could create such exquisite ballads, various messages and biting epigrams. At the same time, he worked physically, and his work was hard and at times even overwhelming, but even constant need could not hide in him that joy of life, that fun and that love for humanity that runs through all his works.