“Comin’ thro’ the Rye”

by Robert Burns

From Bawdy Origins…

The song “Comin’ thro’ the Rye” was composed by Scottish poet Robert Burns for James Johnson’s Scots Musical Museum, where it appeared in 1796. It is thought that the song was inspired by an older bawdy version which appears in The Merry Muses of Caledonia (1799).

- Pauline Mackay, BBC

…to Literary Classics.

However, the song may be best-known today because of Holden Caulfield’s misinterpretation of it in The Catcher in the Rye.

- Michael R. Burch, editor, The HyperTexts

Umm… What Is Rye?Rye (Secale cereale) is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It

is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder. It can also be eaten whole, either as boiled rye berries, or by being rolled, similar to rolled oats.

- Wikipedia

Interpreting the Song

The song points to eighteenth-century society's intrusive approach to romantic relationships. Young couples were frequently the subject of common gossip and closely scrutinised by the strict Kirk elders to ensure that courtships were conducted in an appropriate manner without breaching religious doctrine.

- Pauline Mackay, BBC

Interpreting the Song

Robert Burns, being an honest man, was exhibiting empathy for girls who were castigated for doing what all the boys and men wanted to do themselves.

- Michael R. Burch, The HyperTexts