In the Character of a Ruined Farmer
In the Character of a Ruined Farmer - meaning Summary
A Ruined Farmer's Lament
This poem gives voice to a ruined farmer who laments sudden loss and the effects of fickle fortune. Spoken in plain, direct stanzas, the speaker describes his sleepless anxiety as prosperity sleeps on, his wife’s and children’s quiet vulnerability, and his own inability to support them. The repeated exclamation registers both resignation and desperate appeal; the poem balances personal sorrow with a communal sense of economic precarity. It presents poverty not as abstract suffering but as domestic, immediate, and moral: the speaker’s identity and duties have been undone by circumstances beyond his control.
Read Complete AnalysesThe sun he is sunk in the west; All creatures retired to rest, While here I sit, all sore beset, With sorrow, grief, and woe: And it's O, fickle Fortune, O! The prosperous man is asleep, Nor hears how the whirlwinds sweep; But Misery and I must watch The surly tempest blow: And it's O, fickle Fortune, O! There lies the dear Partner of my breast; Her cares for a moment at rest: Must I see thee, my youthful pride, Thus brought so very low! And it's O, fickle Fortune, O! There lie my sweet babies in her arms; No anxious fear their little hearts alarms; But for their sake my heart does ache, With many a bitter throe: And it's O, fickle Fortune, O! I once was by Fortune carest: I once could relieve the distrest: Now life's poor support, hardly earn'd My fate will scarce bestow: And it's O, fickle Fortune, O! No comfort, no comfort I have! How welcome to me were the grave! But then my wife and children dear O, wither would they go! And it's O, fickle Fortune, O! O whither, O whither shall I turn! All friendless, forsaken, forlorn! For in this world, Rest or Peace I never more shall know! And it's O, fickle Fortune, O!
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