Jessie a New Scots Song
written in 1793
Jessie a New Scots Song - meaning Summary
Faithful Love and Modesty
This short song praises a young woman named Jessie as the ideal of beauty, grace, and modesty. The speaker compares her favorably to famed maidens from Scottish rivers—Yarrow, Ayr, Nith—then declares that none match Jessie. Her charms are described as quietly powerful: love is enthroned in her eyes and her smile enchants, yet she remains unaware of her sway. The poem presents an idealized, domestic femininity where external attractiveness is balanced and elevated by shy restraint, making modesty itself the poem’s highest praise.
Read Complete AnalysesTrue hearted was he, the sad swain o' the Yarrow, And fair are the maids on the banks of the Ayr; But by the sweet side o' the Nith's winding river, Are lovers as faithful, and maidens as fair: To equal young Jessie seek Scotia all over; To equal young Jessie you seek it in vain, Grace, beauty, and elegance, fetter her lover, And maidenly modesty fixes the chain. O, fresh is the rose in the gay, dewy morning, And sweet is the lily, at evening close; But in the fair presence o' lovely young Jessie, Unseen is the lily, unheeded the rose. Love sits in her smile, a wizard ensnaring; Enthron'd in her een he delivers his law: And still to her charms she alone is a stranger; Her modest demeanour's the jewel of a'.
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