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A Book
Review By Frank R. Shaw, FSA SCOT,
Atlanta, GA, USA, email:
jurascot@earthlink.net
A Short Study
of Selected Illustrations
(1795-1925)
The Poems and
Songs of Robert Burns
By
Robert Hay
Carnie
Written in the
year 2000, this scarce book is one every Burns scholar, collector, and
enthusiast should have in his or her library if they are lucky enough to
find a copy! The book is the twenty-fifth anniversary project of the Calgary
Burns Club, and I am not exaggerating when I tell you that it is a very
special publication. One of the reasons I admire the Calgary club is they do
not simply “meet to eat” but they put their money behind great projects that
benefit their community and the Burns and Scottish population at large. This
book is a fine example of their philanthropic involvement.
I did not have
the honor of meeting the author before his death last year, but since
studying his book and talking with people who knew Bob Carnie, I feel as if
I had known him a long time. The loss is certainly mine.
This is a book
of and about illustrations, one hundred of them, black and white with text.
Halfway through the book you will find 16 pages of color photos. Beautiful.
Fascinating. A treasure! The oldest of the black and white illustrations
date back to 1796 and the latest is dated 1925. In each illustration the
author has combined the works of “a good pictorial artist and our great
verbal artist,” Robert Burns. Carnie calls this “a form of artistic
partnership between author and artist” even though the artist is working at
a much later date than the author. The work of the artist becomes a
“pictorial comment” of a scene or a passage of Robert Burns. Carnie had a
fondness of highly illustrated books and enjoyed a wide collection in his
own personal library. From his collection sprang the idea to compile and
write BURNS ILLUSTRATED. I have a few of these illustrated
books about Burns, and it is evident that the publishers employed artists or
designers to decorate the book covers to appeal to the eye of the
purchaser. After all, the idea was to sell the book! What we have here are
illustrations of the poems and songs, Scottish and non-Scottish, written or
rewritten by Burns.
There is no way
we can go through the entire collection in this review, but to illustrate
let us turn to one particular Burns masterpiece, John Anderson, My Jo,
long identified by me as my favorite Burns song. It is a song
on aging, of a couple growing old together. It is the wife who is “indulging
in that favourite occupation of older couples, nostalgic reminiscences of
earlier times”. She remembers her husband’s appearance as a younger man
with locks of black hair like a raven and mentions his current loss of hair
and “frosty pow” (head) as an old man. She actually says to John, “Your
locks are like the snaw”. In the second stanza she talks of the many happy
times they had climbing hills together and of overcoming the difficulties
experienced in life together. Carnie acknowledges that “togetherness” is the
key to their happy and successful marriage. Together they shared many
things. Each spouse always knew the other offered a hand to hold and a
heart to understand and forgive. Call it the gift of love!
With reference
to the song, the author states, “The last four lines deal with that
necessary acceptance of mortality which is required for a couple to grow old
peacefully and to have faith that at the end they will sleep together.”
Now we maun totter down, John,
(must)
And hand in hand we’ll go,
And sleep thegither at the
foot, (together)
John Anderson my jo!
The
illustration Carnie chose for these verses is by the talented artist George
Hay (1831-1912) who “specialised in pictures of Scottish life”. The
revelation of the illustration is indeed remarkable. Holding hands, the pair
is looking into each other’s eyes. She is sitting on a small stool, and he
is on a chair. They are dressed simply but well. (I’m reminded here of Sir
Walter’s Scott’s description of Burns when the young Scott met Burns on his
first trip to Edinburgh.) The room displays a spinning wheel (hers) and on
the table is an open book (his). It may be John’s bible. A pitcher hangs on
the wall as does a picture and a basket sits on the floor. While the room
seems sparsely furnished, the items appear adequate. Are they rich? No! Are
they happy? Yes! Look at their faces. They have discovered the true meaning
of love having lived together so long.
The one missing
fact that would add a little more to the song is the wife’s name. For some
reason she remains anonymous. I’ve never heard anyone mention why she is not
identified. In addition, and ironically, there is no mention of children or
grandchildren. While Burns knew about the former, he knew nothing of the
latter. Dying at the age of 37, we must remember that Burns did not have the
luxury of living to an old age and drawing on a full life of experiences
that include grandchildren. But, he is more than able to draw on the love he
depicted between John Anderson and his wife. To me the greatest word in the
song is “jo”. A favorite meaning to some is “sweetheart” but among other
meanings is joy, darling, lover or dear. The interpretation I prefer is
“love”. No wonder it is used over and over by John’s wife. She is simply
saying, “John Anderson, my love”! After growing old together, could anything
be sweeter? And might I add:
“Grow old along
with me!
The Best is yet to be,
The last of life,
For which the first was made.
(Robert Browning)
BURNS
ILLUSTRATED
has become one of my favorite books. It is a book full of golden nuggets
about Robert Burns. It is a book the average Burnsian will go back to time
after time for more insight or personal edification. This is particularly
true if like me you are a Burns speaker or writer. While the subject may be
based on another era in Scottish history, the messages and interpretations
are as fresh as fallen snow. If you really want to give someone you love a
meaningful gift, look no further. BURNS ILLUSTRATED is just
the present for you. Keep this book in mind for that special gift –
birthday, anniversary and don’t forget Christmas is coming. Just email Jim
Osborne, Proprietor of The Scottish Shoppe in Calgary, at
scotshop@telus.net. The book sells for $175 Canadian plus 5% GST (in
Canada) and $20 postage. You can pay by Visa, MasterCard, or Canadian bank
draft.
Or you can
order the book at this address:
The Scottish
Shoppe
1206-17th Avenue S.W.
Calgary AB T2T 0B8
Canada
(FRS: 10.30.08) |
