Epitaph on a Celebrated Ruling Elder

Epitaph on a Celebrated Ruling Elder - form Summary

Sardonic Epitaph in Miniature

This poem is a very short epitaph that compresses character judgment and humor into four lines. Written in Scots dialect, it presents a speaker who mockingly consigns a local elder to Hell while also praising his thrift—asking Satan to keep the man’s money because he will guard it well. The form’s brevity and direct address create a sharp, ironic tone: the memorial both condemns and admiringly records a practical, avaricious trait. Its compactness turns an epitaph into satirical portraiture rather than solemn tribute.