Puck, the Devil!

It is always entertaining when the Devil is depicted as Burns has done so in his Address to the De'il.  In many traditional interpretations of the Lord of Darkness, he generally falls short of such a title.  In the Bible, the Devil personally appears a mere handful of times with his various demons doing most of his bidding throughout the rest.  The few times the Devil does make an appearance, though, he is generally all business.  Such is not the case with Burns's De'il.  

In the very first few lines "Thou, whatever title suit thee!/ Auld Hornie, Satan, Nick, or Clootie," (99) Burns expresses a familiarity with the Devil, as if it had been reoccurring part of his life over the years.  These titles also suggest that Burns's experience with the entity has not been entirely negative as the connotations of such titles as "Aud Hornie" and "Clootie" seem to be rather positive.  From the very first lines, Burns paints the Devil as something who has  fun and finds glee in his mischievousness, rather than simply seeking to bring damnation to humanity.  

From this, it comes as no surprise that Burns even suggests hope for the Devil in the final stanza.  "But fare you weel, ault Nickie-ben!/ O wad ye tak a thought an' men'!/ Ye aiblins might—I dinna ken—/ Still hae a stake/ I'm wae to think upo' yon den,/ Ev'n for your sake." (100)  Burns's depiction of a Devil is one who is just enjoying itself and may or may not damning humanity on purpose.  For his Devil, redemption is still possible, which is a radical belief which contradicts its depiction by Christian theologians at the time.  To Burns, however, the Devil as a character can be entirely separate from the Devil as a religious figure.