Lyric Poem · Death & Loss
The Song of Death
by Robert Burns
1FAREWELL, thou fair day, thou green earth, and ye skies,
2 Now gay with the broad setting sun;
3Farewell, loves and friendships, ye dear tender ties,
4 Our race of existence is run!
5Thou grim King of Terrors; thou Life’s gloomy foe!
6 Go, frighten the coward and slave;
7Go, teach them to tremble, fell tyrant! but know
8 No terrors hast thou to the brave!
9Thou strik’st the dull peasant—he sinks in the dark,
10 Nor saves e’en the wreck of a name;
11Thou strik’st the young hero—a glorious mark;
12 He falls in the blaze of his fame!
13In the field of proud honour—our swords in our hands,
14 Our King and our country to save;
15While victory shines on Life’s last ebbing sands,—
16 O! who would not die with the brave!
Full-text availability follows the United States display decision recorded below; status can differ elsewhere.
“The Song of Death” by Robert Burns — quilloak.com/poems/the-song-of-death
Quick facts
- Poem
- The Song of Death
- Poet
- Robert Burns
- Length
- 16 lines
- Form
- Lyric Poem
- Themes
- Death & Loss, Love, Nature
Craft notes
How this poem works
Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.
- Shape
- 16 lines · 2 octaves
- Line length
- Lines run 8-11 syllables (median 10), consistent with pentameter. No single length dominates, which is normal once elision and contraction are in play.
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Text, source & rights
A traceable edition
Full-text display is based on the committed source record and a United States term-expiry review.
- Author record
- Robert Burns1759–1796
- Source record
- PoetryDBThe Song of Death by robert-burns, PoetryDB transcription
- Display decision
- Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
- Publication record
- Not recorded in the imported source
- Text fingerprint
- SHA-256 bba027b465acdb92…
- Editorial handling
- Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.