Morality and Immorality and Holy Willie's Prayer and Tam O Shanter Research Paper

Morality and Immorality and Holy Willies Prayer and Tam O Shanter - Research Paper ExampleThere are two particular rimes that he wrote which clearly comprise the sarcastic and humorous tone of his style. These are Holy Willies Prayer and Tom O Shanter. What makes this poem important though is not just that these are prime examples of Burns humor-laden writing style. The said poems besides provide proof of Burns personal perspectives on morality and immorality, as well as the reference of religion these matters. The background of Holy Willies Prayer alone would already provide a coup doeil of how Burns despised hypocrisy, especially if this is committed by men who belong to the perform or the kirk in 18th century Scotland. The poem is about a real character named William Fisher, a leader of the topical anesthetic church in Mauchline where Burns had stayed. Fisher, with whom Burns shared mutual hate, is described as a intolerant elder of the Kirk, who with considerable eloquen ce and the conceit of the humorless, exposes himself as a canting hypocrite (Head 527). The title of the poem utilise to him by Burns is already one that in reality reeks of sarcasm. The emphasis on the word holy comes as a paradox because at the end of the poem, Fisher is portrayed to be asking God to retaliate his detractors with the lines that disregards the basic Christian concepts of mercy and forgiveness. Lord, in Thy day o vengeance try him, Lord, visit them wha did make use of him, And pass not in Thy mercy by them, Nor hear them their prayr, But for Thy peoples sake overthrow them, An dinna spare. Holy Willies Prayer actually paints a picture of a man, who is expected by galore(postnominal) to set the example of how Christians should treat each other, turn out to be just as extraordinary(p) and immoral as those he whitethorn have despised. It is clear that Burns disliked so practically how Fisher had behaved as a churchman, whom the parishioners consider to be near infallible and holy when he is actually committing the same immoralities that he preaches against. There are lines in the poem that actually described Fishers own improprieties. O Lord yestreen, Thou kens, wi Meg -- Thy pardon I sincerely beg -- O, mayt neer be a living plague To my dishonour An Ill neer lift a lawless leg Again upon her. Burns, however, does not criticize Fisher for committing these human frailties. In a very sarcastic tone, he highlights the fact that despite these shortcomings, Fisher still managed to pray that he be forgiven for these minor infractions. While he asks mercy, Fisher instead prays to God that his detractors are spared from it and are penalise for persecuting him. As it turns out, Willie Fishers prayer is basically a portrayal of how a man of the church treats God as a superior that would listen to his pleas more because he is part of the church hierarchy and not for its merits or demerits. The poem provides a picture of Fisher down on his knees, praying to his God, whom he addresses familiarly as if God were a senior official in the church (Gerrard 384). Without putting it into words, Burns depicts a situation where the church is actually isolated from the rest of the people, including its laity. The isolation stems from the notion that those who are part of the church hierarchy are not equal with those outside of it, even if they are Christians too. The concept presented in the poem is that God is prone to be more