Well done, thank you. This quote from Montaigne I hope furthers your exploration: "We need very strong ears to hear ourselves judged frankly, and because there are few who can endure frank criticism without being stung by it, those who venture to criticize us perform a remarkable act of friendship, for to undertake to wound or offend a man for his own good is to have a healthy love for him."
Excellent! I'm definitely sharing this with my Literature students. An analysis and application worthy of Burns and one that we would all do well to learn.
The last part was quoted often in the last century. My mom's friend quote it many times. In Pepys diary he speaks of bad beds in a country inn. " The beds were lousy which did make us merry."
Really good analysis. Didn’t know the link to Adam Smith. I think you need to reflect on your own observations at the end though. What Burns is criticising is not just vanity but unwarranted pride, and that applies to many more of us than people who suffer from addiction and other troubles. I’d say it applies to many of our leaders of all stripes who have inflated views of their own moral superiority.
Hi Dean, thanks for your comments. The section you highlighted was trying to give some examples of ways in which we can deceive ourselves to our own detriment. Burns reflects specifically on pride and vanity in To a Louse, but broadly speaking, there are many aspects of our lives that could be improved by looking at our own behaviour through the eyes of another. I hope that brings a little more clarity to my reasoning. And yes, I agree that our political leaders could generally benefit from a little more humility and self-reflection.
Well done, thank you. This quote from Montaigne I hope furthers your exploration: "We need very strong ears to hear ourselves judged frankly, and because there are few who can endure frank criticism without being stung by it, those who venture to criticize us perform a remarkable act of friendship, for to undertake to wound or offend a man for his own good is to have a healthy love for him."
This is an inspiring look at Burn’s poem. Wonderful.
This is excellently done. A wonderfully engaging reading and a clear and illuminating analysis.
Excellent! I'm definitely sharing this with my Literature students. An analysis and application worthy of Burns and one that we would all do well to learn.
The last part was quoted often in the last century. My mom's friend quote it many times. In Pepys diary he speaks of bad beds in a country inn. " The beds were lousy which did make us merry."
Really good analysis. Didn’t know the link to Adam Smith.
I think you need to reflect on your own observations at the end though. What Burns is criticising is not just vanity but unwarranted pride, and that applies to many more of us than people who suffer from addiction and other troubles.
I’d say it applies to many of our leaders of all stripes who have inflated views of their own moral superiority.
Hi Dean, thanks for your comments.
The section you highlighted was trying to give some examples of ways in which we can deceive ourselves to our own detriment. Burns reflects specifically on pride and vanity in To a Louse, but broadly speaking, there are many aspects of our lives that could be improved by looking at our own behaviour through the eyes of another. I hope that brings a little more clarity to my reasoning. And yes, I agree that our political leaders could generally benefit from a little more humility and self-reflection.
Love the reading and explanation
great work!
12:53 Amazing quote!