Here's His Health in Water
written in 1786
Here's His Health in Water - meaning Summary
Drinking Spite with Defiant Humor
Burns frames a jaunty, defiant voice who has been flirted with and then slighted by a suitor in Killie. The speaker alternates mock resentment and sexual bravado, rejecting communal gossip while still toasting the man "in water"—a dry, ironic salute that signals both refusal and lingering agency. The poem balances humor and wounded pride; its colloquial Scots and local setting give the speaker directness and earthiness. It reads as a compact personal episode about desire, social reputation, and a speaker reclaiming control after a troublesome encounter.
Read Complete AnalysesAltho' my back be at the wa', An' tho' he be the fau'tor; Altho' my back be at the wa', I'll drink his health in water. O wae gae by his wanton sides, Sae brawly he could flatter; I for his sake am slighted sair, An' dries the kintra clatter; But let them sae whate'er they like, Yet, here's his health in water. He follow'd me, baith out an' in, Thro' a' the nooks o' Killie, He follow'd me baith out an' in, Wi' a stiff stand'in pillie But when he gat between my legs, We made an unco spatter; An' haith, I trow, I soupled it, Tho' bauldly he did blatter; But tho' my back is at the wa', Yet here's his health in water.
Feel free to be first to leave comment.