O my love is like a red, red rose
That's newly sprung in June;
O my love is like the melody
That's sweetly played in tune.
The beauty of my love can be compared with a red rose, and the sweet voice and shape of my love are like piece of soft music. As fair art thou, my bonie lass,
So deep in luve am I;
And I will luve thee still, my dear,
Till a' the seas gang dry.
My graceful girl, you are very beautiful and I love you very much; my dear, I will love you firmly until all the seas go dry. The speaker expresses his fiery passion for his love and swears to love her forever.
Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi' the sun;
O I will luve thee still, my dear
While the sands o' life shall run.
My dear, I will love you till all the seas go dry and the rocks melt with the sun. I will love you firmly so long there is a life keeping time or I will love you until the end of my life.
And fare-thee-weel, my only Luve!
And fare-thee-weel awhile!
And I will come again, my luve,
Tho' 'twere ten thousand miles.
Farewell to you, my only dear love, farewell to you only for a short time! I will come back back again even though it were ten thousand mile away, my dear!
A Red, Red Rose
O, My love is like a red, red rose which has newly sprung in June; O, my love is like the melody(music) which has sweetly played harmoniously.
My love is deep as you are beautiful, my pretty girl. I will love you until the sea dry, my dear.
Until the sea dry and the rock melt with the sun. O, I love you till the end of my life, my dear.
Farewell to you, my only dear love, farewell to you only for a short time! I will come back back again even though it were ten thousand mile away, my dear!
Theme: to express strong affection to his love, swearing that he will love her for ever.
Structure:
1.Stanza 1: compare his sweet heart as a red rose and sweet music.
2. Stanza 2-3 : swear that he will love her for ever, and assure that he will never change his heart.
3. Stanza 4: assure his lover that he will leave
for a short time but will come back no matter how far it is.
Form: Scottish Folklore, short lines, strong rhythm. The first and third lines have 8 syllables and the second and fourth lines have 6 syllable in the first two stanzas and 7 syllables in the second two stanzas. Rhyming abab.
Use simile to express the strong affection which can not be controlled. And use repetition to intensify his emotion.