The Shepherd's Wife
written in 1792
The Shepherd's Wife - context Summary
Written in 1792
Written in 1792, Robert Burns' "The Shepherd's Wife" is a brief, comic courting dialogue in Scots dialect. The poem stages a teasing exchange between a shepherd's wife who calls her husband home and a man who refuses ordinary domestic enticements—porridge, roast hen, a neat bed—until the promise of a "luving wife in lily-white linens" finally wins him back. Its plain domestic imagery and repetitive, songlike structure capture rural Scottish life and popular ballad traditions, reflecting Burns's ongoing interest in peasant speech, humor, and everyday courtship rituals.
Read Complete AnalysesThe Shepherd's wife cries o'er the knowe, Will ye come hame, will ye come hame; The Shepherd's wife cries o'er the knowe, Will ye come hame again een, jo? What will I get to my supper, Gin I come hame, gin I come hame? What will I get to my supper, Gin I come hame again een, jo? Ye'se get a panfu' o' plumpin parridge, And butter in them, and butter in them, Ye'se get a panfu' o' plumpin parridge, Gin ye'll come hame again een, jo. Ha, ha, how! that's naething that dow, I winna come hame, I canna come hame; Ha, ha, how! that's naething that dow, I winna come hame gin een, jo. A reekin fat hen, weel fryth'd i' the pan, Gin ye'll come hame, gin ye'll come hame, A reekin fat hen, weel fryth'd i' the pan, Gin ye'll come hame again e'en jo. Ha, ha, how! that's naething that dow, I winna come hame, I canna come hame; Ha, ha, how! that's naething that dow, I winna come hame gin een, jo. A weel made bed and a pair o' clean sheets, Gin ye'll come hame, gin ye'll come hame, A weel made bed and a pair o' clean sheets, Gin ye'll come hame again een, jo. Ha, ha, how! that's naething that dow, I winna come hame, I canna come hame; Ha, ha, how! that's naething that dow, I winna come hame gin een, jo. A luving wife in lily-white linens, Gin ye'll come hame, gin ye'll come hame, A luving wife in lily-white linens, Gin ye'll come hame again een, jo. Ha, ha, how! that's something that dow, I will come hame, I will come hame: Ha, ha, how! that's something that dow, I will come hame again een, jo.
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