EPIGRAM/EPIGRAPH An epigram is a succinct, smart, and, as a rule, humorous statement, of the sort Oscar Wilde used to toss about like Ritz crackers to stray ducks. For instance, from the irresistibly quotable The Importance of Being Earnest: “All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That’s his.” An epigraph is an evocative quotation—rarely humorous but generally succinct—set at the beginning of a book, often immediately after the dedication, or at the beginning of a chapter.
