A Man's a Man for a' That - Robbie's birthday again

       Last night I sang A Man's a Man for a' That at the annual Burns celebration held at the Bay Horse Inn at Totnes in Devon. I apologise to those who had the sound of my singing imposed upon them but the unfortunate failings of my voice could not destroy the grandeur of this anthem. I feel the themes taken up in the lyric are just as relevant today as they were in the.late 18th century and in my vanity I took an opportunity to express them. I have written another longer piece about   A Man's a Man for a' That so I make only a few observations here.

      Robert Burns was a radical influenced by events like the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783 and by the political turmoil in France that led to the French Revolution in 1789.  A Man's a Man for a' That, was published in 1995 and Burns used it to convey his egalitarian ideals. Those who were in  power when the song was first circulated believed it to be a revolutionary song. Burns, who was then employed as a government Customs and Excise officer was fearful of being arrested as a subversive, published the song anonymously.

     In my view it is the first socialist song. It was sung by the celebrated - Dundee born -  folksinger, Sheena Wellington at the re-opening of the Scottish Parliament in 1999. In 1707 the parliament closed for a wee while.

     Paulo Nutini provides a spirited rendering of the song.  Last night at the Bay Horse Inn, readers may be relieved to know, there were a good number of talented singers, musicians and reciters so my performance represented only a brief drop into mediocrity.

     

Is there for honest Poverty

That hings his head, an' a' that;

The coward slave - we pass him by,

We dare be poor for a' that!

For a' that, an' a' that.

Our toils obscure an' a' that,

The rank is but the guinea's stamp,

The Man's the gowd for a' that.

What though on hamely fare we dine,

Wear hodden grey, an' a that;

Gie fools their silks, and knaves their wine;

A Man's a Man for a' that:

For a' that, and a' that,

Their tinsel show, an' a' that;

The honest man, tho' e'er sae poor,

Is king o' men for a' that.

Ye see yon birkie, ca'd a lord,

Wha struts, an' stares, an' a' that;

Tho' hundreds worship at his word,

He's but a coof for a' that:

For a' that, an' a' that,

His ribband, star, an' a' that:

The man o' independent mind

He looks an' laughs at a' that.

A prince can mak a belted knight,

A marquis, duke, an' a' that;

But an honest man's abon his might,

Gude faith, he maunna fa' that!

For a' that, an' a' that,

Their dignities an' a' that;

The pith o' sense, an' pride o' worth,

Are higher rank than a' that.

Then let us pray that come it may,

(As come it will for a' that,)

That Sense and Worth, o'er a' the earth,

Shall bear the gree, an' a' that.

For a' that, an' a' that,

It's coming yet for a' that,

That Man to Man, the world o'er,

Shall brothers be for a' that.

___________

My wife's birthday and George Orwell

     
     Today is my wife's birthday. She was born on January 21st 1950 on the day George Orwell died.
I'm don't know if in some ethereal way she was responsible for this but in my opinion on that day the world got a fair exchange.
      She was never down and out in Paris and as an exceptional swimmer she was never coming up for air.
      She has successfully helped many students preparing for examinations to read Animal Farm. And in the way Eric Blair might have done, she also sees through the bluster of others.

"The great enemy of clear language is insincerity. When there is a gap between one's real and one's declared aims, one turns, as it were, instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttlefish squirting out ink."

    Insincerity may be the enemy of clear language but with its blood brother capitalism, it is also the enemy of freedom and is allied with slavery.  This is the statement I believe Orwell and my wife are making.
   Insincerity is represented by the employer who says, "I'll pay you a fair day's wage." Yet he doesn't. He creates small print or invents conditions that he says have been forced upon him.  He knows that you need the money, that you are desperate, and so he short changes you. When he no longer needs you, he discards you.