Epitaph for Mr Walter Riddell

Epitaph for Mr Walter Riddell - meaning Summary

Bitter Comic Condemnation

This short epitaph delivers a savage, ironic judgment on "Wat" (Walter Riddell). Instead of honoring the dead, the speaker uses exaggerated insults and dark humor to declare the corpse loathsome: even the worms that consume him reject him. The poem relies on personification and hyperbole to overturn the usual consoling tone of memorial verse, turning an epitaph into a final, public condemnation. It reads as a compact, satirical character sketch that leaves no doubt about the poet’s contempt for its subject.