Inscription on a Goblet

Inscription on a Goblet - meaning Summary

Beware the Bewitching Cup

This short poem reads like a cautionary label on a drinking vessel. It warns that the cup contains death and that touching it carries danger, while also acknowledging how irresistibly attractive wine and the convivial pleasures around it can be. The tension between threat and temptation is central: the speaker both alarms and admits complicity, suggesting human susceptibility to pleasures that carry hidden risks. The voice is direct and proverbial, turning a brief inscription into a moral observation about indulgence and its potentially fatal consequences.