Epigrams against the Earl of Galloway
The speaker tells Galloway to leave his mansion for a dirty cave befitting his mind, calls him a knave, and compares his ancestry to a road ending in mire. The speaker asks Galloway to spare them vengeance and let them live quietly, saying Galloway has no kindness to give.
By Robert Burns · Genre: Epigram, Satirical Poetry · 149 words
First lines
What dost thou in that mansion fair? / Flit, Galloway, and find / Some narrow, dirty, dungeon cave, / The picture of thy mind.
No Stewart art thou, Galloway, / The Stewarts 'll were brave; / Besides, the Stewarts were but fools, / Not one of them a knave.
Bright ran thy line, O Galloway, / Thro' many a far-fam'd sire! / So ran the far-famed Roman way, / And ended in a mire.
Spare me thy vengeance, Galloway! / In quiet let me live: / I ask no kindness at thy hand, / For thou hast none to give.
Genres
- Epigram — Each four-line verse delivers a compact insult through a concluding comparison or reversal.
- Satirical Poetry — The rhymed verses ridicule Galloway’s character and ancestry through a dirty cave, a knave, and a road ending in mire.
Tags
epigrams · satire · aristocracy · ancestry · insults · vengeance
What this Textopian page supports
Epigrams against the Earl of Galloway is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated Date unknown.
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- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Burns
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Epigram, Satirical Poetry
- Length: 149 words
- Structure: 1 section, 4 paragraphs
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