The Book-Worms by Robert Burns
The speaker tells maggots to burrow through inspired pages but asks them to respect a lord's taste by sparing his golden bindings.
By Robert Burns · Genre: Epigram, Satirical Poetry · 39 words
First lines
Through and through th' inspir'd leaves, / Ye maggots, make your windings; / But O respect his lordship's taste, / And spare his golden bindings.
Genres
- Epigram — Four rhyming lines culminate in a pointed request to preserve golden bindings while allowing the pages to be eaten.
- Satirical Poetry — The appeal to respect a lord's taste mocks his preference for golden bindings over the inspired pages they contain.
Tags
bookworms · book bindings · aristocratic taste · satire
What this Textopian page supports
The Book-Worms is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated Date unknown.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Burns
- Date: Date unknown
- Language: English
- Genres: Epigram, Satirical Poetry
- Length: 39 words
- Structure: 1 section, 1 paragraphs
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