Epitaph on a tyrant

W H Auden

(One of my favorites, by one of my favorite poets. Some more commentary here)

Listen

Perfection, of a kind, was what he was after
And the poetry he invented was easy to understand;
He knew human folly like the back of his hand,
And was greatly interested in armies and fleets;
When he laughed, respectable senators burst with laughter,
And when he cried the little children died in the streets.

(Susmit reads the poem)