An example of a speech to propose a toast to “The Immortal Memory of Robert Burns”<\/p>\n
This speech was delivered at a Burns Supper in Abingdon in January 2019.<\/p>\n
In my day to day life, two of my favourite sources of information and opinion are the Daily Telegraph and BBC Radio 4. Neil MacGregor recently had a series of five short programmes entitled \u201cAs Others See Us\u201d. Neil MacGregor is a very distinguished person, Member of the Order of Merit, a former director of the British Museum, born in Glasgow and educated at Glasgow Academy and New College, Oxford. In the introduction to each of the programmes, he included three 20 second sound bites. One of these was the voice of the Scottish actor John Laurie reading the lines:<\/p>\n
O wad some Power the giftie gie us<\/em> John Laurie is best remembered as Private Frazer in Dad\u2019s Army. He came from Dumfries and was educated at Dumfries Academy and was famous during his life as a reciter of the poems of Burns.<\/p>\n Surprisingly, I don\u2019t think that MacGregor referred to Burns in any of the programs. Clearly, he expected the Radio 4 audience to recognise the source of the name of the programme series. The programmes were interesting, diverse and entertaining, but did not yield a coherent view of \u201cHow Others See Us\u201d. By \u201cUs\u201d, I think MacGregor meant the British people as we approach Brexit. The day following the last of the programmes, a former editor of the Daily Telegraph, Charles Moore, had something to say in his weekly column about MacGregor\u2019s programmes. Essentially, Moore thought that this was a wasted opportunity to contribute something to the Brexit debate. However, this led to a letter to the editor of the Daily Telegraph from a Professor Peter Jones of Norfolk.\u00a0 Commenting on the title of the programmes, he said that this was almost a pulpit platitude in Burns\u2019 day; it was a central plank in Adam Smith\u2019s lectures published in 1759 as \u201cThe Theory of Moral Sentiments\u201d.\u00a0 He also went on to say that Burns was citing Cicero as the original source, although Cicero was himself summarising Greek philosophers for his fellow Romans.<\/p>\n Well, there you have a connection from:<\/p>\n Of course, Burns did not claim that the idea was original, however he appears to have acquired ownership of the idea.<\/p>\n I think \u201cTo a louse\u201d is an interesting poem, written after seeing a louse on a lady\u2019s bonnet in church in 1786, and I would like to quote the final of the eight sextets.<\/p>\n O wad some Power the giftie gie us<\/em> By the way, apologies to the ladies here present for the use of the word \u2018man\u2019 as a synonym for \u2018humanity\u2019. It is countered by the following fragment from his poem \u2018The Rights of Women\u2019, which you will notice is written in standard English.<\/p>\n While Europe\u2019s eye is fix\u2019d on mighty things,<\/em> I do not often listen to Women\u2019s Hour on Radio 4, but I was walking along the Kent and Avon canal on Thursday morning, and they discussed Burns. It was very interesting, and they even discussed this poem. They summarised it as Burns said that women should have the rights of \u201cprotection\u201d, \u201crespect\u201d and \u201cadmiration\u201d.<\/p>\n I would now like to turn my attention to another matter. Burns lived in a time which is known as the Sottish Enlightenment . It is sometimes difficult for us to appreciate how that time changed the world. In 1600, most people believed in things such as the following:<\/p>\n By the time of Burns, 1760 onwards, no educated person in Scotland seriously believed in any of these things. Later, we are going to hear the Tale of Tam O\u2019Shanter. The humour in the poem rests on the listener being sceptical about the existence of Cutty Sark, and all the rest of them.<\/p>\n Some of the great advances which emerged from the enlightenment include:<\/p>\n There were many notable Scots who had influence which extended well outside of Scotland and they are still remembered today. They include:<\/p>\n What about the ladies? Well, Mary Sommerville who lent her name to Sommerville College in Oxford was the first lady to be a member of the Royal Astronomical Society. She was born in Jedburgh in 1780 and became a distinguished scientist, encouraged by some distinguished scholars of her time. Her picture is now on the new Royal Bank of Scotland \u00a310 note.<\/p>\n When preparing this talk, I read an article on the internet by Professor Sir Tom Devine. He asks and tries to answer the question \u201cWhy did the enlightenment happen in Scotland, and during the 18th Century?\u201d. He identifies several factors:<\/p>\n Many scholars consider that the ideas of the Enlightenment led to the ideas supporting both the American and French Revolutions.<\/p>\n So, what does this have to do with Burns? Well, a great deal.<\/p>\n Burns was and still is, the personification of the enlightenment, and his works did much to communicate the ideas of the Enlightenment. Despite a modest start in life, Burns was well educated, articulate and prolific. His works were first published in Scotland by William Smellie, the man who invented Encyclopaedia Britannica, itself a product of Enlightenment. His works were very popular, and it gave Burns the status of a pop star of the day, a sort of Sir Billy Connelly of his time. Everyone wanted to meet him, and he met the young Sir Walter Scott when Burns was in Edinburgh. Many of the today\u2019s ideas of Scottish identity, kilts, highland dress, and the like were invented by Scott for the visit of King George IV to Edinburgh in 1822.<\/p>\n Burns was supportive of the French Revolution and he had strong Scottish Nationalist views too. Poems such as \u201cScots wha hae wi\u2019 Wallace bled\u201d, still resonate in Scotland today, although \u201cOh Flower of Scotland\u201d which is a derivative is, if anything, even more popular.<\/p>\n When the Scottish Parliament met for the first time in 1999, the singer Sheena Wellington sang \u201cA man\u2019s a Man for A\u2019 That\u201d. You can watch it on You Tube; it is very moving. The entire parliament joined in with the soloist for the final verse.<\/p>\n Then let us pray that come it may,<\/em> Well, finally I would like you all, Ladies and Gentlemen, to join me in a Toast to the Immortal Memory of Robert Burns.<\/p>\n http:\/\/www.sath.org.uk\/edscot\/www.educationscotland.gov.uk\/scottishenlightenment\/introduction.html
\nTo see oursels as ithers see us!<\/em><\/p>\n\n
\nTo see oursels as ithers see us!<\/em>
\nIt wad frae mony a blunder free us,<\/em>
\nAn\u2019 foolish notion:<\/em>
\nWhat airs in dress an\u2019 gait wad lea\u2019e us,<\/em>
\nAn\u2019 ev\u2019n devotion!<\/em><\/p>\n
\nThe fate of empires and the fall of kings;<\/em>
\nWhile quacks of State must each produce his plan,<\/em>
\nAnd even children lisp the Rights of Man;<\/em>
\nAmid this mighty fuss just let me mention,<\/em>
\nThe Rights of Woman merit some attention.<\/em><\/p>\n\n
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\n(As come it will for a\u2019 that,)<\/em>
\nThat Sense and Worth, o\u2019er a\u2019 the earth,<\/em>
\nShall bear the gree, an\u2019 a\u2019 that.<\/em>
\nFor a\u2019 that, an\u2019 a\u2019 that,<\/em>
\nIt\u2019s coming yet for a\u2019 that,<\/em>
\nThat Man to Man, the world o\u2019er,<\/em>
\nShall brothers be for a\u2019 that.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nhttps:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Visit_of_King_George_IV_to_Scotland
\nhttps:\/\/www.thenational.scot\/culture\/14860390.the-saviour-of-scots-why-robert-burns-will-always-have-a-place-in-our-hearts\/
\nhttps:\/\/www.britannica.com\/event\/Scottish-Enlightenment
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