The Fall of Carthage

Altogether elsewhere, vast

Herds of reindeer move across

Miles and miles of golden moss,

Silently and very fast.

—W. H. Auden, "The Fall of Rome" (1947)

Problems stirring in the south,

Records of a trading nation

Seek appropriate quotation,

Though we live from hand to mouth.

On the shelves of supermarkets

Gleaming goodies grate in aspect.

Voters trip the light fantastic,

Bound for Hades in a basket.

Politicians ignore the rules.

In the bedroom, undone muzzles,

In the kitchen, faded spices.

Ask not now the undertaker’s prices—

Best accept in time of troubles!

Writers taught in writing schools

Find it hard to place their pieces.

Herds of reindeer drop their faeces.

Famous figures in the Cloud

Do their best with what’s allowed.

“Les âmes des morts, disait-il, se résolvent dans la lune comme les cadavres dans la terre.” —Gustave Flaubert, Salammbô (1862)

Sunday, October 26, 2025