Page 49 - 100 Best Loved Poems - Teaching Unit

“To a Mouse”
by Robert Burns, pages 26-28

Vocabulary
dominion – ruled-over land
coulter – the blade of a plough

1. The poem is written in a distinct voice. What is this non-standard English known as?

Burns writes this poem in a Scottish brogue, or dialect.

2. In the first stanza, the speaker explains why the mouse needs to run. What does the speaker
say in the second?

In the second stanza, the speaker apologizes to the mouse for ruining its home while
plowing and reminds it of its bond with man—they are both are mortal creatures. He states
that he has “broken Nature’s social union.”

3. One of the most well known clichés comes from Burns’ poem: “The best-laid schemes of
mice and men…” What does this phrase refer to in the context of his poem?

Burns writes that the mouse is not the only one who has learned that having foresight
sometimes does no good. He writes that these well-laid plans often go awry, leaving us to
deal with grief, rather than the “promised joy” we anticipated.

4. What is the tone of the poem?

The poem’s tone is one of nervous reflection and anxious foresight. While the speaker
seems to be telling the simple story of a mouse, the poem later reveals a metaphorical
meaning that compares the mouse’s demise to that of the speaker.

5. According to the speaker, how is the mouse in a better position in life?

In the last stanza, the speaker says the mouse is only concerned about the present, while
the speaker must reflect on the past: “On prospects drear!” and worry about the future,
which “I guess an’ fear!”

T-31